Gifted Girls: Activities Guide for 365 Days of the Year: Fun Things to Do for Kids and Grown-Ups That'll Develop Creativity, Social Paperback - 2003

In this companion to the popular Gifted Girls series for middle grade and up, author Kailin Gow offers a host of activities to offset the dreaded call, "Mom, I'm boooored!" No matter what their interests or experience level, girls can open any page of this book to find an activity to stir the imagination. Subjects range from crafts-including instructions for creating a wall mural and making flower-shaped pincushions-to new games. And what girl doesn't love to eat sweet treats? Gow offers lots of fairly easy recipes for girls to make and share. As the author states in the book's introduction, starting a new project can be scary. Gow suggests that girls work together with their friends or parents. She also uses the characters from her Gifted Girls series as guides. Because each of Gow's characters has a unique and prodigious talent, these characters make a handy way of dividing activities-Lucy excels at crafts, Emily art projects, Jackie nature projects, Daniella recipes and cooking, and Rose the performing arts. While the book is for girls seven and older, seven-year-olds are unlikely to be able to handle the projects alone. Older girls can read and follow the instructions without help, although Gow encourages parents to be involved or supervise activities. While some of the more complicated projects would benefit from illustrations, the straightforward steps are clearly written and easy to understand. Some activities involve cost-going to a hockey game, for example, or taking tap dancing lessons. Others are low- or no-cost. Gow's guide follows nicely in the footsteps of such works as The American Girls Handy Book and complements a long tradition of make-your-own fun. The book is a wonderful antidote for rainy-day boredom, especially for girls who have read the Gifted Girls series. Kailin Gow also writes under the name Victoria London. Her work includes the Gifted Girls series, the Queen B Superheroine series for teens, and the Tiffany T. series for young readers. -Bookwire Reviews, March 10, 2006 "Combines lessons in life, history, and culture to provide positive themes for girls growing up today." --Positive Child Guidance by Darla Ferris Miller