As the mother of two daughters, I dread the preteen years. I’ve watched middle school girls’ self-confidence plummet as they fret over what to wear and how to be noticed.  At the same time, tween girls pull away from their mothers, causing tension and emotional turmoil.

The question is how to strengthen the mother-daughter bond, and fiction may be the answer.  Kathy Thomas, Vice President of Half Price Books, joined a mother-daughter book club with her then-12-year-old daughter. “Confidence and closeness don’t just  happen,” Thomas says.  The moms and daughters pick age-appropriate novels through Amazon.com.  Through the exploration of characters, Thomas says the girls have improved their public speaking skills and communicate more with their mothers.  By starting early (around age 8), moms can help shape their daughters ideas about relationships, sex, drugs and self esteem, says SuEllen Hamkins, M.D. and author of The Mother Daughter Project: How Mothers and Daughters Can Band Together, Beat the Odds, and Thrive Through Adolescence. 

Reading, and talking about books is a wonderful way to stay connected, to share and to open some difficult issue.  My girls and I spend hours at the library; reading is our time, together.  My job is to make sure reading stays a positive way to communicate.  So, today, we're off to the school's book fair.