I picked up an audio book at the library the other day; primarily for my wife. On my way to work on Monday, I realized I didn't have anything cued up in my shuffle, so I grabbed Odd Girl Out on my way to the car. As the father of a new baby girl, I thought it might me interesting to find out about female "alternative aggression". Interesting is not the word. I am down right frightened. It isn't popular to say this, but I had a relatively idyllic childhood. I wasn't one of the Popular kids, but I had good friends and I got to do cool things. I had a few run-ins with bullies, but nothing a few brief moments of violence didn't cure (admittedly, after 3 weeks of fear).
The stories of non-violent bullying among girls contained in this book make me very (that is very in italics, underlined, and bolded) worried. I had no idea how traumatic, life altering, and pervasive this alternative aggression is for girls. I tried to listen to it with my wife in the car and she asked me to turn it off because it made her too uncomfortable.
Along with Gift of Fear, I recommend this book to all fathers of daughters.
1 comment:
I should clarify that I was not too uncomfortable listening to the book. I found it depressing in its accuracy of female passive-aggression. Plus, don't your remember that our kids were being hellions just then?
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