My project of a lifetime really began when I was nine years old and in the throes of confusion and embarrassment as I hit full puberty years before my classmates. I swiped one of my mother's nursing manuals -- which dealt with pediatrics and puberty in very technical terms -- to try to figure out what in the world was happening to my body.
I wrote down the highlights -- misinterpreted from the highly technical medical language -- and fashioned my version of the facts of life and puberty in a handwritten book I made for my younger brother Mike so he would never suffer through such confusion.
Mike, who grew up to become an M.D., was wide-eyed and bewildered as he read the book, memorizing parts of it, the better to torture me later on. "And you wonder why I've never married!" he would joke in years to come before finally marrying happily in midlife.
Some years later, after earning undergraduate and graduate degrees in journalism at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism, I moved sullenly back to L.A. instead of following my heart to New York. Living was cheaper in L.A. and I had student loans to pay off. I was mortified as I watched my Medill friends get jobs at The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, McCall's and The Wall Street Journal while my best prospect in L.A. for working in national media was 'TEEN Magazine.
And then something wonderful happened: I realized how fortunate I was. It wasn't just that working at 'TEEN for nine years allowed me to develop a writing specialty in health and psychology, or that my fellow 'TEEN staffers would be the best co-workers I would ever have, some becoming cherished, lifelong friends. The most wonderful thing was coming to realize that at 'TEEN I could truly be of help to young girls who were wondering, as I had once wondered, what was happening with their bodies and how to make healthy choices and if anyone would ever really love them.
At 24, as Feature Editor of 'TEEN Magazine
I wrote several self-help articles a month in 'TEEN from the late sixties and through most of the seventies as well as doing 'TEEN's "Dear Jill" advice column and editing the "Dear Doctor" column with Dr. Charles Wibbelsman, a young adolescent medicine specialist. Chuck and I used to dream about how great it would be to answer urgent questions from teens without space limitations or having to worry about advertisers objecting to our information or opinions.
That dream came finally came true, with the help of a wonderful literary agent named Susan Ann Protter, when Chuck and I wrote a book together, combining questions from 'TEEN readers as well as his patients with frank, down-to-earth, warmly reassuring answers about so many areas of teen concerns.
THE TEENAGE BODY BOOK was first published in 1979 by Pocket Books/Simon&Schuster. It sold hundreds of thousands of copies, won the "Best Book for Young Adults" award from the American Library Association and morphed into a number of editions over the years with updates published in 1984, 1987, 1992, 1999 and 2008.
Top left to lower right: 1979,1984,1987,1992,
1999, 2008
Over the years, this book has led to a variety of adventures. The 1987 edition landed us spots on Oprah and The Today Show. And that edition also sparked protests from religious groups and a brief media storm in Boston in 1990 because of its frank discussion of sexuality. I was tapped to fly to Boston to defend our book on television and in a contentious town hall meeting. It was a great experience in giving and receiving empathy (as we all realized that we were united in wanting teens to be healthy and safe, only disagreeing on how to do this) and it influenced editions to come. Over the years, the book has changed, giving more attention to the full range of choices and beliefs that teens and their parents have in these increasingly diverse times.
Now we're happily awaiting the publication of the 7th edition of THE TEENAGE BODY BOOK on August 28 by HatherleighPress/Penguin Random House. This one will be for the first generation of teenagers born in the 21st century. It will also be the first edition to be available as both a print book and an e-book.
The Teenage Body Book 2016
A trailer for Teenage Body Book 2016
I can't help smiling as I look forward -- and back.
Who knew that the error-filled homemade guidebook to puberty that traumatized my wide-eyed little brother so many years ago was a sign of a career to come?
Who knew that the job that seemed so unpromising at the beginning was the best possible start in a professional direction that was simply meant to be?
Who knew that shared discontent over the limitations of a magazine column would lead to a 40 year partnership of three: between Chuck and me and Bob Stover, who did the illustrations for THE TEENAGE BODY BOOK, and whom I married in 1977 as we were working on that first edition?
Who knew that my experience of an awkward and alarming passage through early puberty would spark a lifelong mission to help and inform and reassure so many other young people?
What a delightful surprise and wonderful journey it has been.
I wrote down the highlights -- misinterpreted from the highly technical medical language -- and fashioned my version of the facts of life and puberty in a handwritten book I made for my younger brother Mike so he would never suffer through such confusion.
Mike, who grew up to become an M.D., was wide-eyed and bewildered as he read the book, memorizing parts of it, the better to torture me later on. "And you wonder why I've never married!" he would joke in years to come before finally marrying happily in midlife.
Some years later, after earning undergraduate and graduate degrees in journalism at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism, I moved sullenly back to L.A. instead of following my heart to New York. Living was cheaper in L.A. and I had student loans to pay off. I was mortified as I watched my Medill friends get jobs at The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, McCall's and The Wall Street Journal while my best prospect in L.A. for working in national media was 'TEEN Magazine.
And then something wonderful happened: I realized how fortunate I was. It wasn't just that working at 'TEEN for nine years allowed me to develop a writing specialty in health and psychology, or that my fellow 'TEEN staffers would be the best co-workers I would ever have, some becoming cherished, lifelong friends. The most wonderful thing was coming to realize that at 'TEEN I could truly be of help to young girls who were wondering, as I had once wondered, what was happening with their bodies and how to make healthy choices and if anyone would ever really love them.
I wrote several self-help articles a month in 'TEEN from the late sixties and through most of the seventies as well as doing 'TEEN's "Dear Jill" advice column and editing the "Dear Doctor" column with Dr. Charles Wibbelsman, a young adolescent medicine specialist. Chuck and I used to dream about how great it would be to answer urgent questions from teens without space limitations or having to worry about advertisers objecting to our information or opinions.
That dream came finally came true, with the help of a wonderful literary agent named Susan Ann Protter, when Chuck and I wrote a book together, combining questions from 'TEEN readers as well as his patients with frank, down-to-earth, warmly reassuring answers about so many areas of teen concerns.
THE TEENAGE BODY BOOK was first published in 1979 by Pocket Books/Simon&Schuster. It sold hundreds of thousands of copies, won the "Best Book for Young Adults" award from the American Library Association and morphed into a number of editions over the years with updates published in 1984, 1987, 1992, 1999 and 2008.
1999, 2008
 |
| Foreign Editions, l to r: German, British, Chinese |
Over the years, this book has led to a variety of adventures. The 1987 edition landed us spots on Oprah and The Today Show. And that edition also sparked protests from religious groups and a brief media storm in Boston in 1990 because of its frank discussion of sexuality. I was tapped to fly to Boston to defend our book on television and in a contentious town hall meeting. It was a great experience in giving and receiving empathy (as we all realized that we were united in wanting teens to be healthy and safe, only disagreeing on how to do this) and it influenced editions to come. Over the years, the book has changed, giving more attention to the full range of choices and beliefs that teens and their parents have in these increasingly diverse times.
Now we're happily awaiting the publication of the 7th edition of THE TEENAGE BODY BOOK on August 28 by HatherleighPress/Penguin Random House. This one will be for the first generation of teenagers born in the 21st century. It will also be the first edition to be available as both a print book and an e-book.
AMAZON:
BARNES & NOBLE:
PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE:
HATHERLEIGH:
I can't help smiling as I look forward -- and back.
Who knew that the error-filled homemade guidebook to puberty that traumatized my wide-eyed little brother so many years ago was a sign of a career to come?
Who knew that the job that seemed so unpromising at the beginning was the best possible start in a professional direction that was simply meant to be?
Who knew that shared discontent over the limitations of a magazine column would lead to a 40 year partnership of three: between Chuck and me and Bob Stover, who did the illustrations for THE TEENAGE BODY BOOK, and whom I married in 1977 as we were working on that first edition?
Who knew that my experience of an awkward and alarming passage through early puberty would spark a lifelong mission to help and inform and reassure so many other young people?
What a delightful surprise and wonderful journey it has been.
What an awesome story! Congratulations on your enormous success with this book and all of the difference that you have made for so many teenagers. This story is such a great example of being grateful even in times of diversity, knowing that many many times good things will come out of our struggles. Congratulations! I just love your blog!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Analyze A! Yes, I am grateful for the adversity I've seen -- and continue to see, by the way -- as I never take any success I have for granted and learn so much in all the struggles. I really appreciate your nice comments about the book and the blog!
DeleteWhat an amazing woman. Thank you for sharing your story, wisdom and foresight. Your experience and knowledge is truly a benefit to others.
ReplyDeleteThanks! I hope whatever I've learned can also benefit others...
DeleteThank you so much for your wonderful blog. One of the VERY few I subscribe to. And this time I hit GOLD. Your book is now on order for my teenage granddaughters, ages 15 and 17 in a month.
ReplyDeleteI have followed your blog from early on in your retirement to AZ and it parallels experiences in so many ways, giving insights to all the situations you cover so completely.
I am looking forward to reading the new material you discover in your newly recreated writing career.
Jeannine
Wow, Jeannine! You've made my day! I so hope The Teenage Body Book will be helpful to your granddaughters! I'm so pleased to hear that you've been following the blog for so long. Actually, the blog -- and blog readers -- have given me my next book! I'm currently writing a book about parent and adult child estrangements. It was prompted by the fact that my blog posts covering adult child and parent issues are by far the most read and by so many of the heartbreaking stories contained in the comments on those posts. I'm on a December deadline (yikes!) for the book and it will be published by Sourcebooks, a wonderful publisher very supportive of its authors, with a tentative publication date in October 2017. So I'm keeping busy -- which is why I haven't been blogging as much in the past year.
DeleteYour "who knew" questions proved to be road signs in creating a wonderful tool for teens. Boy I wish it had been available when I was a teen.
ReplyDeleteMe, too, Patti! Wouldn't it have been nice to know that so many of the things we worried about were...just normal? Thanks so much for your comment. I always enjoy your stopping by!
DeleteCongratulations, Kathy. I know this revision has been a long time in the making and now it is born! Terrific and very good news. I wish I had this book as a teenager and now I think it may be even more important than ever -- kids seem to be growing up so fast and the whole body image thing is such a big deal. It's more than what is going on inside, it's all the panic about what the outside looks like, too. Timely and so very needed. Wish I knew a teen I could give it to!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jeanie! Yes, you've had an insider's view of all the angst involved in getting this new edition finished -- as well as the joy. You're right about teenagers growing up so fast these days, though some concerns remain timeless -- body image, discomfort with so many changes all at once, feeling ugly, wanting so much to be loved. Come to think of it, in somewhat different ways, that can apply to aging, too! Thanks so much for your comments!
DeleteCongrats on a great career ... and for helping teens with their issues over the years. I wish your book was available when I was a kid. I first learned about sex from my buddy Mike while we played pool in his basement. Of course, most of it was wrong . . . and after all these years I'm still struggling to get it right!
ReplyDeleteLove your comment, Tom, about still trying to get it right! Aren't we all? I really appreciate your kind words -- especially coming from a fellow journalist! Thanks so much for stopping by!
DeleteNobody ever explained my teenaged, or even earlier body to me and I certainly knew nothing of sexuality, not until I was in my late teens. How difficult and complicated it all was. All that worry and uncertainty would have been spared me and my contemporaries if we had had access to a sensible book like yours. Or if our parents hadn’t been such buttoned-up, purse-mouthed prudes.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Friko! Both Chuck Wibbelsman and I grew up going to Catholic schools and we both did a lot of wondering about sexuality during that time. We ended up writing the book we would have loved to have read in our youth!
ReplyDeleteOur generation learned about sex is ways that make you wonder if any of us ever got it right. Thank you for continuing to have the curiosity that led you on your initial quest. Thank you for wanting to get it right.
ReplyDelete