Maiden USA: Girl Icons Come of Age (Mediated Youth)

Kathleen Sweeney's analysis of the doomsday predictions that "girls are in trouble," is intelligent and insightful, optimistically re-visioning the state of adolescent girls as an opportunity for empowerment. Her critique of Piper's "Reviving Ophelia" is the best I have read, challenging the notion that what Ophelia represents should be revived, and instead offering up new "Icons" of positive, powerful adolescent girls representing a new energy emerging in our culture. Combining psychology, art, new media, and mentoring, "Maiden USA" is a bold take on the heroic archetypal feminine making itself know to us all.-- Laura Zegel, LCSW

Ooh, Ah! the revelations that abound and resound in Kathleen Sweeney's Maiden USA! Get inspired on media literacy, as racy as it gets from Reel to Real. Discover a fecund treasure map to media awareness, which rouses us all up to the next level of empowered creativity. Kathleen Sweeney is the Goddess Durga of Media, cutting thru swaths of "Eyecon" demons and ignorance about girl identity; she is our media maven, and a media mechanic who regenerates our collective engines. Her wisdom is both fun and transformative.Sweeney has opened and affirmed these eyes with her smorgasbord of media icons and plenty of truth serum. She reveals who and where we are in the culture of media now, and how to traverse that culture as well as to produce it. This is the "bodymindcentering" of media lit, a true hit with wit and grit to nourish us with its empowering maiden's milk of sanity. Reading it leads to media activism with a myriad of mission and means.

A candid, accessible, brilliant review of girl icons as presented in the media over the past 20 years (with nods to Barbie and a few other earlier famed love/hate icons). While so much academic writing can be abstruse and sometimes even cynical, Kathleen's book is optimistic and readable. Her call for media literacy as an antidote to negative narratives is cogent and smart. Her descriptions of work done by Real Grrls and other girl filmmakers and photographers is inspiring. Required reading for Millenial Girls, their parents, teachers and anyone else who loves media.

What an inspirational inside view from a free thinking woman/writer/artist/Mother.If you want to understand the barrage of media influencing our young women and long to see girls be encouraged to take the reigns into their own hands- then this is a delightful and insightful ride- full of ideas, rich with hope- a must read for ALL of us!!!

This gem of a book is not only important, informative, and thought-provoking--it's also clever, funny, and downright brilliant. If you have a daughter, or you are one, or you know one--or even if you don't--Maiden USA is an enthralling read. What a splendid job!

WOW!I just got the book!It looks incredible!I'm so excited to read it.What a wonderful gift you have made in documenting all of this.