The Good Girl Revolution

June 4, 2007
In this follow-up to her 1999 A Return to Modesty, Shalit takes a second stab at getting the women of the Western world to stand up and take notice of their rampant objectification. Using letters, interviews and various studies, this new book examines current attitudes toward sexuality, "empowerment" and childhood among parents, teachers, kids and the mass media. Like her last, this volume is dense with anecdotes designed to shock and dismay (a mother who tells her 25-year-old that she is going to lose her boyfriend if she doesn't sleep with him, a teacher who tells a 14-year-old that you might as well call it over if you haven't had sex by the third date), and to report on the women and girls who aren't giving into the pressure of hyper-sexualized society-including the harassment they routinely face because of their stand (Shalit answers with admirable bonhomie her own critics, who dismiss her as a backward-thinking " 'professional virgin,' " "a seat that I believe is already occupied by Madonna"). This book takes a hard look from the traditional family-values perspective at how we got to where we are and what progress can be made, and does so with a conviction that will resonate with and bolster many parents.