As in the boys’ book, controversial subjects are addressed generally and conservatively if at all.
This girls’ book skips the topics of sleep and performance-enhancement drugs in favor of a section on eating disorders. In many cases the author, a registered nurse, has covered the same material as she did in various editions of this title as well as The Boy’s Body Book. This puberty-navigation guide covers girls’ bodily changes, body care, health, relationships with family and friends, staying safe, and handling stress. With young readers diagnosed with anxiety in ever increasing numbers, this book offers a necessary mirror to many. Raina is white, and her classmates are diverse one best friend is Korean American. Even as she copes with anxiety disorder and what is eventually diagnosed as mild irritable bowel syndrome, she experiences the typical stresses of school life, going from cheer to panic in the blink of an eye. Thought bubbles surround Raina in some panels, crowding her with anxious “what if”s, while in others her negative self-talk appears to be literally crushing her. Amping up the green, wavy lines to evoke Raina’s nausea, Telgemeier brilliantly produces extremely accurate visual representations of stress and anxiety. Her therapist helps her learn to ground herself and relax, and in turn she teaches her classmates for a school project. At first Raina isn’t sure about seeing a therapist, but over time she develops healthy coping mechanisms to deal with her stress and anxiety.
She worries about sharing food with her friends and eating certain kinds of foods, afraid of getting sick or food poisoning. Raina begins having regular stomachaches that keep her home from school. Even a year later, when she is in fifth grade, she fears getting sick. Young Raina is 9 when she throws up for the first time that she remembers, due to a stomach bug.
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