"Straight from the trenches, a mom's tale of weathering her daughter's transformation from sweetheart to snark mouth." - PeopleWith the eye of a reporter, the curiosity of an anthropologist, and the open-and sometimes wounded-heart of a mother, award-winning author Lauren Kessler launches an eighteen-month mission, embedding herself in her about-to-be-teenage daughter Lizzie's life. Everywhere from middle school classrooms to the mall, from summer camp to online chat groups, Kessler observes and chronicles-and sometimes participates in-the vibrant, dynamic, and scary life of a twenty-first-century teen.
With grace and skill...Kessler writes with true fascination and appreciation for what her daughter is experiencing... With every description of epinephrine or serotonin, it is clear that she, too, is learning, keeping the passages accessible rather than didactic...Reading about Ms. Kessler's struggle and gradual catharsis will bring a sense of peace to the mothers of teen girls in realizing they are not alone. And for those of us who have been werewolves ourselves, reading about her journey will inspire new appreciation for those who put up with the snarling.
-Emily Fuggetta,
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Straight from the trenches, a mom's tale of weathering her daughter's transformation from sweetheart to snark mouth.
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People Having the final word in an argument doesn't count for much when you're trying to help your daughter negotiate the bumps and blind curves in the road through adolescence...Lauren Kessler captures these debates and dilemmas with pitch- perfect humor and rue...[and] dives into a mountain of research and interviews with experts to understand how social structures, peer pressure, shifting societal norms and biological imperatives all affect teen behavior...
My lC,