Ophelia Speaks. Adolescent Girls Write About Their Search for Self

Customer Reviews

Widen The Search

2004-02-20
'Ophelia Speaks : Adolescent Girls Write About Their Search for Self' is an essential addition to the vital library focused on teenage personal development. I gave Sara Shandler's book to my daughter and suggested that while she was searching for self, she might also look for her homework sheets, the four overdue library books I've been ordered to pay for, the banana skin I'd seen in her closet two months ago, the family cat last heard meowing under a mountain of crumpled jeans on her floor and her best friend, Marsha Pippens, missing, presumed piled, since last Saturday's sleepover.

The Help Teenage Girls Need

2003-03-20
Before I read this book I was convinced that no one else in the world felt like I did, which was unhappy and afraid. However after hearing the stories of girls whose lives were much more horrible than mine,I began to realize that things were not so bad and started to heal. Every mother or grandmother should give this book to her daughter.

Ophelia may have spoken, but what about the others?

2002-12-07
I read this book on a suggestion from a friend, before I read "Reviving Ophelia", because she wanted to see if I would be as dissapointed with it as she was. I was more so. While there are some outstanding essays in this collection, the bias of the editor clearly stands out. There is no one for the outcasts to relate to. There was no musician, nor was there anyone that dealt with an alternative religion. There were no essays from people who had a different relationship with their parents than she had. The sections are poorly named and divided. All in all, it is an unworthy book to be associated with the original. Some girls it may "make feel less alone", but for me it only accentuated the differences. Definately take out from the library before you buy it.

Another Book for (mid-late) Teen Girls

2002-11-21
If you are looking for a book that will empower you as a young woman, try Eve Ensler's The Vagina Monologues. It made me laugh, it made me cry, and it made me proud to be a woman. I recommend this book to any woman who is sexual, wants to be sexual, or is just tired of getting crap for having a vagina.

Important to read

2002-06-01
Sara Shandler was in high school when she read Dr. Pipher's book, Reviving Ophelia. She found the book a link between her self and her sisters, other teen girls. It was a message to let her know that she wasn't alone. Sara felt, however, that Dr. Pipher's book was still too clinical, too adult and removed from the actual struggles of modern life for young women. At a young age, she decided to write, or at least edit, another book, allowing girls to speak for themselves.

What Ms. Shandler created was a collection of essays, submitted by middle school, high school and college age girls all over the country, from all areas, races, and social strata. The essays range over such subjects as physical appearance, eating disorders, parents, rape and molestation, sexuality, friends, feminism, school, and religion.

Though the voices Ms. Shandler presents here are candid and outspoken, Ophelia Speaks, nonetheless, manages to present a more hopeful outlook on the lives and futures of young females in America today. The problems are real, but the hearts and minds are strong, not fragile or weak. The hardships are mostly spoken of matter-of-factly, from the pens of the girls who have all ready adapted to difficult circumstances. Rather than promoting change in society, Sara Shandler sends her book out as a letter to all adolescent girls, simply to let them know they are not alone. The only thing that this book asks for in return is that the reader listen without judgement, to the young females in America who simply want to be heard and understood.

Alyssa's Review 2005-12-09
Ophelia Speaks by Sara Shandler, is a book filled with heart warming stories from adolescents everywhere. Although this novel discusses mature content I feel that girls everywhere should read this novel. Ophelia Speaks discusses these issues in a mature and open minded fashion. In our English class we're learning how women are objectified in today's society. Ophelia Speaks discusses everything from rape and drugs to pregnancy and abuse. I feel that it's important for girls to have knowledge in what is happening in the world, regardless of age. I enjoyed reading Ophelia Speaks because the novel was based on true stories. Since these stories are true they give the reader an opportunity to connect with them on a personal level. I consistently found myself reading this book outside of school, which is rare. I recommend this book to people, especially women, of all ages. On a personal note I would suggest bringing a box of Kleenex while you read this book. I feel that it is just as important for men to acknowledge these issues especially since they have an active part in most of these issues. It is important for people to acknowledge and learn from experiences, both traumatic and remarkable. And especially since we are the future it's necessary that we learn from the past to prepare for life. This book conveys the message that you're not alone in life no matter what the circumstances are. It is important to know that rape is not your fault as well acknowledging that you're not alone.

A Huge Waste of Time 2005-05-01
I've never seen a larger waste of literary effort than I did in Ophelia Speaks by Sara Shandler. I am (...)old and, as the targeted audience, I found nothing redeeming hidden among Shandler's shameful pages. Perhaps if Shandler had advertised a different prospect, I would not be so mortified for her hideous compilation. However, considering that she wished to voice the confusion found among adolescents, I must say, I think she failed miserably. The submissions are threaded with poorly written pieces and the polar extremes of teenage horror. Death, rape, abusive boyfriends, bulimia, cutting- you name a traumatic experience, and I'll bet you it's in there. It seems odd to me that the book was supposed to advocate an "adolescent's search for self," because, with all due respect, this was a terrifically depressing collection. Seriously. Play hide and go seek all you want with the optimistic stories, but you'll be searching for quite some time. One of the sorry pieces that truly ticked me off was "The Body Under Assault", a testament to the bleak and destructive attitudes of teenage drama queens. How is this person's horrific disorder EVER going to help me "find myself" or obtain a positive outlook? Also, not one piece reflected my own opinion. Shandler managed to pluck the most polarized stories so that she failed to represent the opinions of your average adolescent altogether. Instead of optimistic, soulsearching entries, I found myself lost amongst rabid quests of nightmarish ex-friends, forests of self-pitying tales of trauma, and barren plains of the problems that fester in nuclear families. How is a regular teen supposed to find any sort of guidance through such morbid tales? Not to mention that Shandler seems to pride herself with the belief that she's this determined, successful, understanding undergraduate. Think again...and again, and again, and again. Shandler's little tidbits of insight preceding each chapter left me craving to meet her only so I could quiet her self-righteous nuggets of wisdom. Save your money and forget the book!

GIRLS NEED MORE 2005-04-25
Okay, I know there is a place for a book that is filled with girls' worries and sorrows and anguish. But for my money, it's more valuable to give a girl a book that does not just reflect her angst, but that offers solutions, tips, hope, and empowerment. The best book I know about for girls (preteen and teen) is GIRLTALK: All the Stuff Your Sister Never Told You which recently came out in a fourth edition. I read it as a teen back in 1985 and recently gave the fully updated book to my nieces--who loved it.

Telling it like it is 2004-05-17
In reading this book, I found it to be exactly like the life of a teenage girl. Anyone could read this book and get something out of it. In idea, it reminds me of the Chicken Soup series, but I enjoyed how it only focused on teenage girls and the struggles that they face. Excellent Read! Get it today!

Ophelia Speaks:Stereotyping all female adolescents 2004-02-25
'Ophelia Speaks' by Shandler is a poor attemp at writing on Shandler's part. I had to read this book for my SOC 204 class, but otherwise I would have never picked this book up to read. I found the book to be only a collection of letters, stories and poems that Shandler had collected from adolescent girls. Most of these entries did not capture the true life of adolescent girls but instead glamourized the stereotypes that society has about female adolescents. The author, at the time of collecting these reading, was only 17 and it seems as if she was just putting this book together to make a few extra bucks. As well, I believe that since she sent out a letter asking for submissions for the book, I feel that the girls that wrote the entries, were meerly looking for some sort of fame by having their entries in this book. I also cannot stand how the author's experiences never reflect the experiences of the writings; this further indicates that the writings are not accurate. The author also never comes to any conclusion after a chapter. She could have given some psychological/sociolgical/physiological reasoning behind some of the girls experiences.
I would not refer anyone to read this book. It was a waste of time and money.
Save your money and spend it on better things.