c. 2000 Religion News Service

“Reluctantly Lily peeled her eyes off the Indian books and looked at the lady with the long fingernails. She was facing them now, and Lily saw that she had matching lipstick, put on without a smudge, and dainty gold earrings that danced playfully against her cheek. Something about her made Lily tuck her own well-bitten nails under her thighs and wish she’d looked in the mirror before she came in here to make sure she didn’t have playground dirt smeared across her forehead.”

_ From “Here’s Lily!” by Nancy Rue

(UNDATED) No longer a child and not yet an adolescent, an American girl aged 8 to 12 may feel she’s so very in-between.

A new series of books targets this age group, often called “tweens” by researchers. The series is a joint project of Women of Faith, the national Christian women’s conference organization, and Zonderkidz, the children’s publishing wing of Zondervan Publishing House.

Through fiction, nonfiction and a devotional diary, the series aims to help “tween” girls explore self-image, body changes, personal care, friendship and faith. The books are designed to appeal to young girls likely to identify with the struggles and triumphs of a fictional heroine. A companion nonfiction title explores issues arising from the fictional one.

Included in the series is a devotional diary, written by Susie Shellenberger in the style of a young girl writing in her diary. It includes devotions just for girls on the journey to becoming teen-agers.

“We’re reaching for the younger girls and teaching them how to discover the necessary ingredients in an intimate, growing relationship with Christ,” said Shellenberger, host of a live, call-in radio show and editor of Brio magazine, both Focus on the Family projects. “That (relationship), in turn, gives them the confidence they need to maintain a healthy self-esteem and grow into strong, fulfilled women of God.”

The idea for the series sprang from the concerns of women attending Women of Faith conferences across the United States. Many women told organizers that they needed ways to share their own experiences with their daughters and new materials to assist “tween” girls on the road to womanhood.

Background research for the project by Zonderkidz indicates girls do not always get what they need to become strong women. Parents tend to interact with boys in ways that encourage independence, mastery and self-confidence. But parental socialization and play activities with girls may be more likely to foster dependence by restricting exploration and providing toys that emphasize beauty and nurturing over skill mastery and action, according to the children’s publishing house.

“Research tells us that `tween’ girls are nearly even with boys in the school subjects of math and science and continue to lead boys by a year or more in reading,” said Gary Richardson of Zonderkidz. He notes that some research organizations believe this time in a girl’s life need not be a time of rebellion, but may be a transition period of significant spiritual and emotional growth.

“As has been the case for several years now, girls (and boys) have experienced a `hurry up’ culture,” he said. “That is, `tween’ girls are now generally interested in the fashions and topics that interest teen girls, ages 13-19. Our challenge is now that many `tween’ girls are still in the process of developing the emotional and mental skills to understand what’s happening to them.”

Literature targeted to their age group and its special struggle can help hone those skills, said Nancy Rue, author of 12 books planned for the series. Four titles are available now.

Six of her titles are fiction and six nonfiction. The nonfiction tackles specific issues. For example, in “The Body Book: It’s a God Thing,” Rue explores changes beginning or about to begin in girls ages 8 to 12. “It seems puberty is hitting a lot earlier,” she said. “No one really knows why. I tried to really take it back to the basics: Suddenly you have armpit hair. You need a bra and your mom won’t let you have one. There are many things that are misconceptions because a lot of girls don’t talk to their moms. Little (misconceptions) like if you go the dentist and are having your period, the dentist can tell.”

In her fiction, her central character, the indomitable Lily Robbins, 12, lives in the midst of this uncertain world. A long-legged and red-haired youth, Lily “goes at everything 350 percent,” said Rue. “In the first set (of books), we’re dealing with appearance. In `Here’s Lily!’ she decides she’s going to be a model. In the process, she forms this club, Girlz Only Club. In this club are the girls who are struggling in her class. They get teased a lot.”

The book’s message is that Lily learns true beauty runs deep, conquering her fears, her doubts and her pride enough to build self-esteem and share what she has learned with other girls her age.

But the message is only part of Rue’s purpose.

“First and foremost, literature should entertain,” said Rue. “This is not a preaching vehicle because I feel if I’m going to show that a God- centered life is important, that it needs to be woven into everything that you do, I need to show that, not tell it.”

A mother and former high school teacher, Rue has written other fiction for children ages 8 to 12 and worked as a church youth director, theater workshop developer and camp director.

“I am hoping and praying that girls will become more and more at ease with the changes that are happening within _ emotionally and physically,” she said. “I want to make that way into puberty a lot easier for them.”

(Cecile S. Holmes, longtime religion writer, teaches journalism at the University of South Carolina. Her e-mail address is: cecile.holmesusc.jour.sc.edu)

DEA END HOLMES