Sign in to wowOwow

Enter the username or e-mail address that you used when registering at wowOwow.
The password field is case sensitive. Click here if you have forgotten your password.

Please register for wowOwow

By registering, you indicate that you have read and agree
with our privacy policy and terms of service.
Home › Entertainment

Question of the Day | 08/21/2008 1:00 am

What one book must all young women read before they turn 21?

© Shutterstock
Liz Smith

Liz Smith | 08/21/2008 1:00 am

What the West Is Really All About

Well, this is a silly question because one hopes she’d have read too many books to count already. So I’ll just say the gloss achieved by reading and paying attention to the great Shakespearean scholar Harold Bloom’s The Western Canon would point her in the direction of what Western civilization’s greatest thinkers and writers were all about. Bloom dissects the major literary works of post-Roman and Biblical times. And if one doesn’t know what to take from that, then one isn’t concerned with being a fully realized, thinking soul. At the very least, The Western Canon shows us what we don’t know and need to know and haven’t really read.

Click here on this text to read my nationally syndicated daily column.
comments0 Comments
Joan Ganz Cooney

Joan Ganz Cooney | 08/21/2008 1:00 am

Why Young Women Need Edith Wharton

I would never recommend just one book for any young person but I would tell her that the novels of Edith Wharton would give her immense pleasure as well as make her grateful to the women’s movement for changing the way it would have been for her had it not occurred.

comments5 Comments
Read more about: Advice, book, Literature, Society

118 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

MugsyPeabody
Yes, thanks, Phyllis. Got it.
By MugsyPeabody on 08/21/2008 12:55 pm
xuxiaonan
I love to read <> I think it can make men love their life and family. The book is very important to me. There’s one time that I was always lose my confidence，my friend recommend me to read this book. I have never read such a book like it.before,it couraged me and made me happy,
By xuxiaonan on 08/21/2008 7:22 am
BonnieDZ
Not necessarily a “must read”, “The Box Car Children” left quite an impression on my sisters and I back in the day.
By BonnieDZ on 08/21/2008 7:57 am
kermieb
Bonnie D-Z—Oh my, I read that book as a child. Great book. I remember loving it.
By kermieb on 08/21/2008 3:34 pm
BonnieDZ
It’s available on Amazon.com. should you wish to read it again. Enjoy!
By BonnieDZ on 08/21/2008 5:01 pm
IneDrage
I think everybody should read a great deal of books before turning 21, but “Gone with the wind”! Every young girl should read that one!!! it’s a great story that really points out that there’s nothing to do, but to find new sulutions to your problems!
By IneDrage on 08/21/2008 8:53 am
VivvyStewart
Khalil Gibran’s “The Prophet”. I still cherish the copy I got when I was in college.
By VivvyStewart on 08/21/2008 9:11 am
am
oh, there are quite a few… i guess i would say any of the books by jane austen & also, the golden notebook by doris lessing.
By am on 08/21/2008 9:12 am
LaughingAllegra
“A Room of One’s Own” - Virginia Woolf — absolutely! It is my HS graduation gift to every young woman — along with a check of course.
By LaughingAllegra on 08/21/2008 9:33 am
LorraineBates
The Color Purple. Very empowering book for young women, and definitely had a huge impact on me in my college years.
By LorraineBates on 08/21/2008 9:41 am
LenaB
I’m going to answer this question with the same response that I gave here for the most important book I’ve ever read: “The book that changed my life was one that came too late. It was 1990 and I was going through a divorce from an abusive husband. I don’t remember who told me about this book, but it is a must read for every African American woman- every woman for that matter. The book was “Mad At Miles- A Black Woman’s Guide To The Truth” by Pearl Cleage. This book helped me examine why I ended up in an abusive marriage and literally opened my eyes to the possiblity of a healthy relationship with men. I did not fully adhere to all of the advise and ended up later in a three year relationship with a committment-phobic man. But the happy ending is that I later married a good man (we’ve been married 12 years) and I gave it to my daughter when she turned 15. With that book and our great relationship, she has become an honor roll college freshman. Pearl empowers her sisters to remember their worth in a misogynist culture.” There a too many horror stories of young women being violated by young men who profess to love them. If a young woman has the benefit to read “Mad At Miles” hopefully she will see that she still has the personal power to end an abusive relationship before it’s too late.
By LenaB on 08/21/2008 10:13 am
MaizieJames
Hello Lena: Thank you for sharing your experiences. I’m not familiar with this title, but I’m happy this book helped you, and I’m sure the information you’ve shared will help others. Congratulations on your successful marriage.
By MaizieJames on 08/21/2008 5:30 pm
LenaB
No thank you for being so gracious Sister Maizie. It is my belief that one of the worst things to happen to a woman is to be held hostage in an abusive relationship. It takes years to overcome the physical and emotional damage. Our young women must be mentored to believe in themselves. I struggled and suffered, so I make it a point to empower my daughters and other young women. “Mad At Miles” (ISBN-10: 0962814202) was published in 1990 and is apparently hard to find today. Only used copies are available on Amazon books and Ebay.
By LenaB on 08/21/2008 6:31 pm
BellaMia
One of the best ways for young women to be mentored in healthy relationships is to see them and experience them in their own childhood homes. A daughter’s relationship with her father is a good predictor of her ability to attract honorable men. The quality of her parents’ marriage is also a strong predictor of her own relationship success.
By BellaMia on 08/22/2008 3:10 am
LenaB
Hey Sister Bella! You are so very right. When a father imparts wisdom and loving encouragement to his daughter, there is nothing she can’t do. My wonderful dad cautioned me, yet I still made reckless choices. But he never gave up on me and when that bad marriage was over, he was right there for me. The important thing is to never give up on any young woman or man caught in that vicious cycle. Whether she has a loving father or no father figure in her life, every woman should be empowered. It was thought that women, who grew up without the benefit of a strong fatherly role model, usually gravitate towards controlling or abusive men. I’m proof that it’s not true in all cases- like everything else in life it’s a matter of personal choice.
By LenaB on 08/22/2008 1:13 pm
« first‹ previous12345678next ›last »