Six Ways to Keep the “Little” in Your Girl Guiding Your Daughter from Her Tweens to Her Teens by Dannah Gresh

Since I have a granddaughter in the age group discussed in Six Ways to Keep the “Little” in Your Girl, I wanted to read it hoping for some insights a grandmother could use. The book is directed to mothers, so it will be more helpful to them. I think I have been a little bit naïve about the pressures on children between the ages of 5 and 10, so the book was helpful in revealing the subtle, and not so subtle, dangers to young girls’ developing minds and emotions.

I discovered in this book that a gift I had purchased for a friend’s daughter had worldly connotations I had not been aware were part of the doll’s mystique. I just thought it was a cute doll. When I brought up what I had learned from the book, I learned the mother was aware and had discreetly traded it for something more suitable.

Author Dannah Gresh is the mother of two daughters. She not only writes out of her experiences, but also shares what she has learned through her own research. She gives resources for further reading on this topic. She writes, “Eventually, my research led me to the knowledge that value formation--concerning purity, family structure, sobriety, and other all-too-common teen issues--does not occur during the teen years. The values are formed from the ages of 8 to 12.”

By the time parents get around to dealing with some of these issues, the children have already formulated values that may be difficult to change. This book gives some tools with which to connect mothers with their preteen daughters so they can talk about anything. The book is divided into two parts. The first part discusses how to connect with your daughters, “Becoming a connecting Mom; the second part covers “Six Ways to Keep the “Little” in Your Girl.”

She gives scripture references, such as, Deuteronomy 11:18-19 and Proverbs 22:6. Putting these into practice effectively requires spending time with your children and being actively involved in guiding their value formation. I believe this book is well worth the small amount of time it would take to read. Parents becoming aware of the pressures in today’s society as well as learning about resources to counteract those pressures in a Christian way could make all the difference to your daughters and your relationship with them.

 

Book Review By Scarlett Stough

Title: Six Ways to Keep the “Little” in Your Girl, Guiding Your Daughter from Her Tweens to Her Teens Author: Dannah Gresh, copyright 2010 Publisher: Harvest House Publishers, Eugene, Oregon ISBN: 978-0-7369-2979-0