Book Review

Girls Gone Mild (It's not bad to be good) by Wendy Shalit.
I think it is funny to note that her first book, "A Return to Modesty", was listed in Playboy as a "man's worst nightmare". Go Wendy!

One of our leaders recommended this book to me. It seems that lately, I have seen several students deal with the issues of sexuality, modesty, and self expression. Here are just a few thoughts from the first three chapters.

*Girls are made to feel that they must offer something to the guy, and it better be more than just the pleasure of their company.

*As early as 14, girls do not have any concept of sex as something special. They've already been programed to be desensitized to see sex as merely a casual transaction.

*In 2005, the TV show Desperate Housewives ranked as the most popular network show among kids ages nine to twelve. How scary!

*The National Institute of Health in May of 2006 reported that sexually active teens are 4x as likely to be depressed than other teenagers who are abstaining.

*The fact that a girl can "hook up" with a guy and not fall for him, is considered to be a victory on her end.

*The number one reason why men are choosing to marry later is because sex without commitment is so widely available.

*If a girl is unwilling to display her body for millions of people to see (via my-space pictures and other social interent networks) then she is considered to have a confidence problem.


*"Friends with benefits" results in the destruction of the friendship, so where is the benefit?

*The overall view of society is that if you think sexuality should remain private or special, than you must ashamed of it.

*Teenage girls are being pressured by parents to experiment like never before. Parents want their kids to be normal, and they think that normal is expressing your sexuality loudly.

I'll post again after I've read the next three chapters. I am glad that there is someone like Wendy who can express her views in an intelligent manner with psychological, social, and scientific data to back it up!