Help!: A Girl's Guide to Divorce and Stepfamilies

Answers letters from girls dealing with various aspects of divorce, remarriage, and stepfamilies. Includes tips, quizzes, and advice.

A down-to-earth, practical advice manual gleaned from readers' letters to American Girl, asking for advice about divorce. With ``one out of every two marriages in America ends in divorce,'' readers are told that, if it happens in their families, the most important thing they can do is to ``talk.'' Beginning with the split-up and explaining how divorce works, this guide discusses the problems: wishful thinking (that parents will reunite), the one girl/two homes tug-of-war, stepparents, and stepfamilies. Holyoke's tone is one of love and understandingshe validates the hurt and confusion while giving wise advice on how to deal with the pain and how then to move on. Interspersed with the text are quizzes (which, unfortunately for institutions, ask readers to ``circle'' and ``check'' their answers); the answers offer insight into all sorts of situations. A savvy, simple book that will become a must for some girls of divorcing parents. (further reading) (Nonfiction. 9-12) -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Grade 4-8-This excellent self-help book draws on letters that have been sent to American Girl magazine over the years. The readable, general text includes advice from girls who have experienced parents' divorce, their dating and remarrying, and living with stepfamilies. In addition to offering words of encouragement to youngsters in these same situations, some of the letters pose questions or ask for help. This inquiry-and-response format and the inclusion of multiple-choice quizzes and peer input result in a reader-friendly nonfiction title. Yet there is plenty of solid information here. The upbeat and lively presentation stresses that divorce is never the child's fault and emphasizes that it is usually the best solution to the parents' problems. Plentiful full-color and black-and-white cartoons further enhance the book's appeal. Jane Hurwitz's Coping in a Blended Family (Rosen, 1997) includes a resource list of books, Web sites, newsletters, hot lines, and even a board game. Zoe, Evan, and Ellen Sue Stern's Divorce Is Not the End of the World (Tricycle, 1997), written by teenage siblings, takes a more in-depth approach. Nonetheless, Help! offers just that-help-and should be added to most collections.
Barb Lawler, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, PA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.