Daring Book for Girls Interview and Giveaway
When I was a young girl, I devoured books about spying, eager to discover the secrets of invisible ink and other tricks for espionage. At some point I moved on to learning the craft of friendship bracelets, and then to ghost stories, and so on.
I suppose today's girls look up this assortment of skills, lore, and ephemera on the Internet. However, the problem with the Internet is that you usually find what you were looking for, and not much else.
Browse a good book, instead, and you discover so much more. You might even find an unexpected piece of the puzzle as you assemble your own identity.
That is the charm of The Daring Book for Girls and its collection of biographies of fascinating females, rules for entertaining games, and tips for all sorts of successful adventures.
At a time when there is so much pressure for young people, especially girls, to concentrate on their appearance and to conform (and when wasn't there?), this book recognizes that sometimes the bravest thing you can do is dare to be yourself.
Everything about the book, from the cover that suggests exciting secrets, to the confidential tone, speaks of a world where play is powered by the imagination, not electricity, and it is the journey, not just the destination, that counts.
Whether a girl needs inspiration and role models (Abigail Adams), advice for handling tight spots (How to Negotiate a Salary), or just some suggestions about how to while away a summer's day (Clubhouses and Forts), she'll find what she's looking for and probably a great bit more in The Daring Book for Girls.
Keep reading for an interview with the authors, Andrea J. Buchanana and Miriam Peskowitz, and a chance to win one of two copies...
Interview with Andrea J. Buchanana and Miriam Peskowitz, authors of The Daring Book for Girls
Your book is called "The Daring Book for Girls." Tell us more about the daring girl. What is she like?
A daring girl is anyone with a spirit of adventure, whether intellectual or physical. She wakes up each morning, ready to enjoy the world and its challenges. Daring girls figure out their dreams and follow them. They know life is never perfect on the first try, and that activities and skills take patience to build, and that's a good thing. Daring girls might be outgoing or shy, or anywhere in between, but whatever her personality, a daring girl gets herself in the game, whatever her game might be.
Oh, and boys can be daring too.
Why might today's girl need some advice about how to be daring?
Girls today are given a lot of mixed messages -- they are told that the world is dangerous and scary, and that they need to be perfect to succeed, even as they are told that they can and should do it all and have it all. The bar for what it means to be a girl is constantly being raised.
Girls are rarely described with words like daring, curious and brave. And yet, in the face of all the pressure on our girls, they may need some support in following instincts that aren't reflected back to them in popular culture. We are talking about being daring in the context of girlhood, which means giving girls some positive ideas about what being a girl can mean, giving her some alternatives, and in general, helping her to hold on the being a girl, when there is so much pressure to dress and act like little women at very young ages. Sometimes just being earnest and kind, being interested in knowing things, and being curious and excited is daring enough in a world that teaches our girls to be jaded and hyper-sophisticated when they are nine.
What is your favorite chapter of the book and why?
Andi: I loved researching real-life women spies from the Civil War through World War II -- I'd had no idea Julia Child was a spy before she was a chef!
Miriam: My favorite changes every day: I like the projects, everything from making your own light (from some batteries, copper wire, and a bulb) to making a flower press (and in the process learning about real tools) to making two kinds of scooters, a flat one like the kids use in gym class and an old-fashioned upright wooden scooter.
What other authors, books, or resources do you recommend for daring girls?
We have a really wonderful chapter called "Books That Will Change Your Life." We recommend 20 main books, and then list nearly a hundred others (from science fiction to mystery to a recommendation on reading the dictionary). That's a great place to start.
We also urge girls to talk with their moms and dads, aunts and uncles, grandparents, family friends.... there is so much oral tradition and knowledge and stories that we never really talk about, and which girls (and boys) want to know. When my grandmother read the book, she started remembering her girlhood in the early 20th century, and told me things I hadn't yet heard.
Who are some current, well-known daring girl role models, including girls and women who might inspire daring girls?
In our chapter on women explorers, we're thrilled to mention Samantha Larson, who just this year (at age 18) became the youngest American to climb Mt. Everest. Our chapter on modern-day princesses includes the story of Sarah Culberson, who discovered her royal status at age 22 and now works to raise money for her family's tribe in Sierra Leone.
Another chapter lists the many women who have been elected as Presidents or Prime Ministers of their countries, around the world, to run their countries, like Mary McAleese and Mary Robinson, both of whom have been the president of Ireland (Mary McAleese is still in office), and Chandra Kumaratunga, President of Sri Lanka for over ten years.
What is the most daring thing you did as a girl?
Andi: The most physically daring thing was probably jumping off the roof of our house onto the trampoline... but probably the most daring thing I did when I was a kid was when I was nine and I confessed to my fifth-grade teacher that I had no idea how to do math. As a perfectionist and a kid who'd always been identified as "the smart one," this was pretty daring indeed. I had skipped a grade when I was very young, and because I was such a good reader, everyone just assumed I knew math, too. I didn't want to disappoint anyone, so I never said anything -- until the fifth grade, when we hit fractions and long division and none of my made-up rules about math worked anymore. Admitting to my teacher that I was totally lost (and risking her disappointment) was really difficult. But she was wonderful -- she took me all the way back to the basics, and with her help I finally understood what I'd been missing all those years. That teacher was a pretty daring girl, too.
Win a Copy of the Daring Book for Girls
This book would make a fabulous gift for any young girl on your list. And you can win one of two copies. US shipping only for this contest.
Simply leave a comment by December 10, 11:59 EST, telling us the most daring thing you did as a young person and we will select two winners at random.
Make sure to either leave an e-mail address or URL where we can reach you OR leave a comment using a nickname and let us know that you did so we can contact you if you win.
Buy a Copy of the Daring Book for Girls
If you want your copy right away, Click HERE to buy The Daring Book for Girls ($14.97).
Filed under Books, Books (Activities), Books (Advice), Books (School Aged)
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11.29.07 at 2:46 pm
sara comments:
I’ve had my eye on this for my niece for Christmas, so what a treat it would be to win it!
sblilly14(@)yahoo(.)com
11.29.07 at 2:56 pm
thothwife comments:
My best friend and I used ti get on our bikes and ride as far as we could to try to get lost. Needless to say, ast 8 yrs old we never got very far or actually got lost, but we thought we were so daring.
11.29.07 at 3:00 pm
The Saunders Family comments:
oh, hmmm…i was not a daring child, too shy, maybe i need to read this book and be a daring adult, or teach my daughter to be more daring!
i have had my eye on this book!
11.29.07 at 3:17 pm
Anonymous comments:
The most daring thing I did was hitchhiking. Not only daring, but STUPID!
11.29.07 at 3:29 pm
Lesha comments:
The most daring thing I did was steal my parents car keys and tried to drive at the age of 6 or 7. Thankfully they caught me in time! ~lol~
11.29.07 at 4:09 pm
angelaandconnor at gmail.com comments:
With my granddaddy we made “Devices” to catch snakes (and other wild animals) and we would catch and “relocate” all the snakes in my grandmothers yard.
I blogged ya too :
http://contestaddict.blogspot.com
11.29.07 at 4:45 pm
Jill comments:
I snuck out of the house one night to hang out with my best friend. We read magazines and ate microwave popcorn. Then I snuck back in and went right up to bed. I was a pretty good kid, so this was by far the most daring thing I ever did. I’ve had my eye on this book for a while!
11.29.07 at 4:49 pm
Carissa comments:
I was not very daring, but I would love to give this to the little girls in my life so they can be daring.
11.29.07 at 5:44 pm
cathy lane comments:
When I was a kid I did all kinds of things. When I was 15 I wanted to go to a concert on long island. I had no car or anyway to get there so my friend and I decided to hitchhike there. It was a blast! That was the beginning of adventure for me! The list could go on but I would run out of room. I think that girls are just as daring as boys if not more because we really have a stereotype to break out of if we are to be adventurous. It is expected that boys be daring. Thanks for writing an inspiring book!
11.29.07 at 6:55 pm
Sunshinemama comments:
One summer, we found a door unlocked at our school. A freind and I snuck in to see what the inside of the boys bathroom looked like. Unfortunatly, we set off an alarm and soon a police officer caught us laughing at the urinals.
kristie2@comcast.net
11.29.07 at 7:04 pm
vmkids comments:
My most daring thing was to walk across the top of a bridge near myh house. I did it all the time but after I got married wanted to show hubby and couldn’t do it. Guess just thought I had more to lose now.
11.29.07 at 7:32 pm
Shannon comments:
Not very daring, but have some nieces who would love this.
11.29.07 at 8:42 pm
Andrea comments:
The most daring thing I can think of doing (besides sneaking out when I was in high school) - my favorite place to read was balanced on a branch in this big oak tree behind the house I grew up in. Now I can’t even climb that far up! (granted, the tree has grown, too)
http://momtothefey.blogspot.com
11.29.07 at 8:47 pm
windycindy comments:
Without a doubt, the most dangerous thing I did was be too daring when I first got my driver’s license. My friends and I would get in different vehicles and play “Ditch!” We literally would go 80 miles or so on country roads and on hills, all 4 tires would leave the road! The players would drive into corn fields to ditch the other drivers. It is amazing none of us were hurt or killed during these escapades! Thanks,Cindi
jchoppes[at]hotmail[dot]com
11.29.07 at 9:32 pm
Stephanie comments:
So many to choose from…I jumped a train with my friends will it was still moving! Ahhh, can you say too dangerous!
11.29.07 at 9:36 pm
Laura @ Laura Williams' Musings comments:
Swinging on a grape vine across a creek down from my parent’s house.
Count me in please.
blogged ya: http://laurawilliamsmusings.blogspot.com/2007/11/thursday-edition-of-contests-galore_29.html
11.29.07 at 10:32 pm
Anonymous comments:
Double count me in - money is tight - really tight - It’s so tight I squeak when I walk!
11.30.07 at 12:58 am
angie comments:
Hmmmm…I guess the most daring thing that I did when I was a young kid was when I climbed a really large tree with a group of friends and then climbed from a branch onto the roof of the house. I wish that this book had been around when I was a young girl. It looks like a great read.
11.30.07 at 1:33 am
Bebemiqui comments:
I keep trying to win this one.
11.30.07 at 2:26 am
Heather comments:
The most daring thing I did as a girl was to write a love letter to a boy in my 6th grade class, telling him how I felt about him in great detail.
11.30.07 at 3:09 am
David comments:
Streaked in the 70′z
11.30.07 at 3:18 am
nor_lou comments:
I swung on a willow branch off of a roof
11.30.07 at 3:19 am
Jennifer P comments:
My sister and I explored the woods behind our house, up to the (very busy” highway on the other side of the ravine, and (this is the daring part) once crawled thru the culvert under the highway.
11.30.07 at 4:09 am
jenna comments:
This is one of the best books this year. I would love to give it as a gift to my cousin.
I drove around town with a learners permit.
11.30.07 at 4:29 am
Lily Pad Mom comments:
The most daring thing I ever did was spend a semester abroad in Australia. I was never very good about making the first effort, talking to strangers, asking directions etc. But I took a leave of absence from my own school, stepped out of my comfort zone and went over through another school completely on my own. My parents never thought I would actually do it, and were shocked when I actually walked down the jetway and got on the plane. It was not only the most daring, but the best thing I ever did. I grew up more in the 6 months there than the other 7 semesters of college put together.
ourlilyspad.blogspot.com
11.30.07 at 4:40 am
MAUREEN comments:
I use to go around on my bicycle after the garbage man and he would give me the good stuff he found. Where were my parents?
11.30.07 at 6:06 am
Miranda comments:
Please Enter me thanks
11.30.07 at 6:56 am
marshwins comments:
Perfect for my teen neice!!
wesgonnawin2006[at]gmail[dot]com
11.30.07 at 7:32 am
Scribbit comments:
Oh this is one I’d really like–I just bought the boys book for my sons and would love this one.
Most daring thing? Built tree houses, made my own perfume with fireweed and other flowers. Does that count?
11.30.07 at 8:03 am
Jason and Caryn comments:
the most daring thing I did as a little girl was go to an extreme camp called Second Wind. It was a Christian camp designed to build teens’ faith. we went whitewater rafting, backpacking, rappelled…the craziest thing we did was camp solo for one night. it was to encourage us to trust solely on Christ.
11.30.07 at 3:57 pm
redron comments:
I let the air out of all my brother’s tires on the car. He had gotten me mad at him earlier in the week. It was 2 years before he found out it was me. He said as long as I had a reason. He really thought it was the girl he had taken to dance and dumped.
11.30.07 at 5:26 pm
AspergersKitty comments:
Climbed a big rickoty tree
11.30.07 at 5:54 pm
Jenny comments:
I was not the most daring child in the world, but once I jumped out of a huge tree, because I had to go to the bathroom and didn’t want to climb down. Ended up spraining my ankle to boot!
I’ve been wanting to get this book for my daughter, as well as for my two nieces! It would be so great to win this! I
12.1.07 at 1:51 am
jbubolz-miller comments:
Okay, So i decided to sleep out in the open air in our backyard and lasted until 2 am=). It was getting cold outside.
12.1.07 at 3:01 pm
Jcollaird at aol dot com comments:
Please enter me!
12.1.07 at 6:03 pm
Tamara comments:
This would be a perfect gift for our daughter,
12.2.07 at 10:00 am
caseykelp comments:
the most daring thing I did was walk across the train tressle that went over the falls in my neighborhood. It was fine till you looked down or heard that far off train whistle.
12.2.07 at 1:14 pm
w. wilson comments:
Well, I jumped off a roof once, but only because my friends all did it….
12.2.07 at 3:16 pm
frannie comments:
I grew up in the country– everyday was an adventure. jumping out of barn eaves, playing in the creek, staying outside from dawn til dusk, tree swings, building forts, playing army captive games with my brothers, catching wild critters… like I said, everyday.
12.3.07 at 3:27 pm
cdrury comments:
I am sure it was drinking and driving!
12.3.07 at 9:27 pm
Ryan and Vanessa comments:
I grew up in a very, very small town (pop 200 or less!). We did daring things everyday. I rode my bike on the highway 7 miles to the next town when I was 10. That’s where all my friends lived. As a teenager, the most daring (and absolutely stupid) thing I did was drinking and driving. Somedays I’m amazed we survived.
12.4.07 at 11:19 am
Adriana comments:
Most daring thing I did? Saying yes when he asked me to marry him. It meant leaving everything I knew (and everybody) back in another country.
Thanks for the contest!
12.5.07 at 2:04 am
Anonymous comments:
The most daring thing I did..I lived in the city and where I live has lots of hills. We devised a fun game. What I did was tie a jump rope to the metal bar that holds the seat onto my friends bike. I had on my roller skates, He drove down the hill at top speed while I held onto the jump rope behind him on akates. Street Surfing. Coming to the turn onto the street where I lived at break neck speed, I let go rather than hit a parked car and grabbed the big blue mailbox to stop myself. Needless to say when my Mom came out and his Mom came out both of us were grounded and that ended the Street Surfing.
12.5.07 at 4:28 pm
Becky, Mom, Mommy, Hey you, comments:
I was a boring kid…Maybe the most daring thing I ever did was convince my sisters to take a ‘mud bath’ naked because I thought it would be funny to watch them get in trouble
12.6.07 at 9:03 pm
Ginny comments:
I am dying for a copy of this book, I could have sworn I entered but do not see my name. Let’s see, the most daring thing I did, hmmm. When I was young we used to play in the woods in a lot & climb a treehouse that was badly put together by us kids. When I was a bit older, I had a friend with a super strict family (they weren’t from the US & they were the kind of family that picked my friends husband still). We used to sneak out her moms car & go out to eat in the middle of the night. I was the oldest of the 3 of us girls, so I got to be the driver. Crazy stuff we did
12.6.07 at 9:33 pm
Amanda comments:
Hmmm, probably the most daring thing I did was sneak out my moms car when I was 15. Thank god I survived and no one was injured. Yikes!
My neice would love this book!
Thanks for another great giveaway
12.7.07 at 7:10 pm
T Hulbert comments:
I skipped school several times in the first grade because I hated my teacher. My mom was not happy when she found out!!
12.8.07 at 8:25 am
Anonymous comments:
I was a good little girl!ty 4 the contest!
12.8.07 at 2:54 pm
Gina comments:
I ran away with a funk band when I was 17…
12.9.07 at 4:15 am
forgetfulone comments:
Daring, huh? Well… The only time in my life I was really daring was when I was 14/15. A friend and I skipped school together. I remember running through the field across the street from the school. And… driving my daddy’s truck around the neighborhood before I was licensed to drive!
12.9.07 at 2:40 pm
Ron Miller comments:
cliff diving into a filled quarry
12.9.07 at 3:14 pm
Raquel comments:
I would love to win this book for my daughter’s. I have the dangerous book for my son, and I think it would be super neat to have one for my daughter’s too.
12.9.07 at 5:19 pm
paryjeja comments:
Climbing trees!
12.9.07 at 9:06 pm
theyyyguy@yahoo.com comments:
I tried out for the Theater Club.
12.10.07 at 1:45 am
mikekittle2020@yahoo.com comments:
This is a repost by accident, forgot to leave my email. I guess the most daring thing that I have done was either a strip tease for my high school speech class, and using dirty pick-up lines in front of my class and teachers when running for junior class president.
12.10.07 at 6:48 am
Milk Carton Manna comments:
I was a pretty wimpy kid - I’m not sure I did very many daring things as a young girl. As an adult, I’ve surprised myself at my newfound bravery and … daringness? I suppose it all started when I moved away from home and lived borderline-homeless for several months when I was 18… Ah, the memories! We already have a copy of the boys book, and I’d love to win this one! Thanks for the chance!
12.10.07 at 7:24 am
kerri69 comments:
i used to steal money from my sisters piggybank to buy candy i did eventually get caught
12.10.07 at 7:34 am
samantha.painter@gmail.com comments:
me and my friend stole $200 worth of merchandise, we were board… we’re going to hell, lol
12.10.07 at 7:39 am
anniehall4000@aol.com comments:
i served my parents brownies with weed in them, they were “special” brownies i guess. hahaha, they never found out
12.10.07 at 10:30 am
Anonymous comments:
My mother, who I haven’t seen since I was 14, was a racist.
She hated everyone, and for ignorant reasons.
This is weird because we’re hispanic and it was the early 1980’s, not the 60s.
Basically every time I had a black friend, or listened to soul music or anything ethnic, I was risking a beating.
So I guess I was being daring by risking my life, my health and my bones by defying my mother and refusing to be a racist.
Once she caught me playing with a black girl and she beat me and threw away my Rainbow Brite doll because the girl touched it.
I took lots of beatings because I wouldn’t get rid of my friends and I knew she was wrong.
Now at age 33, I’m an artist and a world citizen with a mixed family and a daughter who loves other cultures.
Defying your upbringing and becoming a better parent than the one you were given is a way of being daring.
I think my little girl would like this book.
tonylethal@aol.com
12.10.07 at 11:00 am
Mya comments:
I snuck out of the house growing up almost every single night!
12.10.07 at 11:08 am
Candes comments:
I shall refrain from the most darling since I don’t wish to influence innocent childre.
So lets dilute things a bit. How about the time that me and my best friend jumped out her window and ran through the streets barefoot to the 7-11 store? It was carefree, and blissful. Oh what our parents didn’t know…. Or maybe they didn’t want to? 
12.11.07 at 1:09 am
gabbygatorsmom comments:
I guess one of the most daring things I have done was when I was in 9th grade, I had a terrible crush on this Senior, he was in my Spanish Class, and he had eyes as blue as the ocean….. anyway, I’d write poems, and notes and put them in pink envelopes and stick them in his locker, signing them as a secret admirer, eventually someone saw me, and he found out who it was. I am sure his friends(many were girls) really had a lot of fun laughing about me, I was dirt poor, overweight, and they were all very mean to me. He was always so nice to me though, and, never stopped being nice to me. He even thanked me for it later, because it had meant so much to him to know someone cared. I don’t know where I ever got the courage,lol. I’m not a daring person.
12.11.07 at 1:33 am
artmarcia comments:
There is a family story that as a preschooler I was swinging on the swings in our backyard, singing at the top of my lungs–stark naked!
12.11.07 at 2:03 am
mama2stmh comments:
The most daring thing that I did as a young girl? I remember that I helped a little girl who had wandered out into the road, to get back to the sidewalk. Not too daring, but true.
Have a beautiful day,
Lesley
12.11.07 at 3:04 am
purango comments:
I sneaked my brother and sister’s Christmas presents out from under the tree and hid the. Boy did they bawl/
12.4.08 at 1:41 am
Cindi comments:
What a great book concept. Girls today really should read a book such as this one. I like spirit in young people. Please add my name to your drawing. I appreciate it…..Cindi