For the parents: Read our review of Raising Girls Who Like Themselves by Kasey Edwards and Dr Christopher Scanlon

“There is no single right way to raise a daughter. Families are different, children are different, and our capacity to parent the way we want to varies enormously from one day to the next.”

Free of parental guilt and grounded in research, Raising Girls Who Like Themselves is imbued with the warmth and wit of a mum and dad who are in the same parenting trenches as you, fighting for their daughters’ futures. Packed with practical, evidence-based advice, it is the indispensable guide to raising a girl who is happy and confident in herself.

The book places a strong emphasis on equality. Authors Kasey Edwards and Dr Christopher Scanlon use terminology inclusive to heterosexual parents, same-sex parents, non-binary children, and more.

Before tackling how to raise children, the book hones in on the baggage parents may carry.  Edwards and Scanlon ask, did you make your own relationship choices? Were your educational and career decisions made to please your own parents? Do you really ‘just want your child to be happy’? These questions are food for thought, preparing you for the guidance ahead.

There are seven qualities that enable girls to thrive and arm themselves against a world that tells them they are flawed:

1. A girl who likes herself has a power perspective
2. A girl who likes herself has body confidence
3. A girl who likes herself owns her body
4. A girl who likes herself is calm
5. A girl who likes herself is independent and masterful
6. A girl who likes herself has strong relationships
7. A girl who likes herself is herself

This list of characteristics forms the chapter titles of the book. Each chapter explores why each quality is important, what you can do to instil them within your daughter, and the obstacles that you may need to tackle. Filled with chapter recaps, personal anecdotes, and quizzes strategically integrated, this book is designed to help you process, learn and incorporate these techniques in the way you parent.

As a daughter and one of four sisters myself, I recognise how crucial a guide like this can be. There have always been influences that can shatter a girl’s self-esteem and confidence. With social media and images of perfection consuming us daily, it’s imperative that, now more than ever, girls grow up liking themselves. I’ll certainly be passing on this guide to my sisters and their husbands so my four nieces can conquer the world and love who they are.