Brave Girls: Raising Young Women with Passion and Purpose to Become Powerful Leaders

Psychologist Radin's vision for equipping young women with leadership skills amounts to an extended promotional brochure for Unleashed, her 12-week after-school program that teaches middle school girls "social justice via animal rights." Building on the central insight that cultivating bravery in preadolescents means teaching them to identify and voice their own values, opinions, and personal strengths, the book aims to alleviate the "psychological distress" accompanying a time of rapid emotional and physical maturation. Throughout the book, Radin provides short testimonials from former Unleashed members testifying to the program's success in "tapping into girls' passion at a formative age [to] profoundly shape their experiences of power and leadership." The articulation of precisely how to achieve Radin's worthy goals, however, is diffused by broad generalizations about "gender norms and stereotypes" and language imbued with the cheerfully ambitious yet vague tone of the life coach and leadership consultant. Meanwhile, transferable advice for parents, teachers, and coaches appears only in the small "power boosts" concluding each chapter. Readers may be inspired by Radin's desire to aid women in "reshaping their world into one that is just, humane, and mindful," even if the suggestions she offers add up to only a partial solution. Agent: Laura Nolan, Paradigm Agency. (Jan.)