As a young girl, I had a large library of children’s books. One of my favorite books was titled, ‘The Care and Keeping Of You’ by American Girl. Twenty-one years later, this book is still my top choice as the best book for the preteen girl. This past weekend, I took my 8-year-old daughter for a “girl’s day out”. During our girls-only outing, we made a stop at Barnes and Noble to buy her a copy of her own.
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Over two decades ago, this book was my first introduction to beauty, skincare, and puberty. My mom and I talked about these things often, but as a girl who loved books, I appreciated the wealth of knowledge and the pretty illustrations of this book. I read and reread this book many times as a young girl. The principles of self-care, hygiene, and beauty have stuck with me ever since.
My baby girl is 8 (she will be turning 9 this year) and we have started having these types of casual conversations surround growing up and puberty. A few times, she admitted to me that having these conversations isn’t always comfortable, and I reassured her that it was OK to have those awkward feelings.
Not pressuring her to talk about it any further, I decided to continue to educate her and introduce her to these new topics by purchasing this book instead. If you are looking for a way to introduce the idea of hygiene and puberty to a young lady you love, this is the best book for the preteen girl aged 9-12.
It has been three days since I’ve gifted my daughter this book, and she is already past the halfway point and on her way to completing the entire book. She didn’t like talking to me about periods, training bras, and pubic hair – but she was more open to learning their ideas from reading about them in the book first. Every time she learned something new in her book, she didn’t hesitate to share with me what she’d learned. For that reason alone, I rate this as the #1 best book for the preteen girl in your life.
As an wife and mom with a lot of responsibilities, I must admit I don’t always take care of myself the way I should. However, I don’t want to forget to instill principles of self-care into my daughter. Even at 8-years-old, she is learning the importance of rest, hygiene, and mental care. As her mom, it is my job to make sure she learns to always make herself a priority.
Although this book was written for girls ages 9-12, the second edition of this book written for older girls is titled The Care and Keeping of You 2: The Body Book for Older Girls.
Did you have this book as a girl? Let me know!
Until next time!
Sincerely, Victoria
