by Marilyn C. Hilton
Reviewed by Katherine Swarts
Price: $9.99 (paperback)
To order: Amazon
Author of several books for young girls and numerous articles on parenting, Marilyn Hilton brings these fields of expertise together in The Christian Girl's Guide to Your Mom. Designed in the "sound byte" style familiar to Internet surfers and Eyewitness or Dummies readers, this book is the perfect choice for tween girls who want to get to know their mothers better-or who want to plan "what kind of mother I will be someday."
Each of the eleven chapters centers around a theme, such as "Mom Cares About Me," "Mom Doesn't Expect Me to Be Perfect," or "Mom Can Trust Me (and I Can Trust Her)." Each characteristic of a good mother is related to a characteristic of God, the perfect Parent.
Well illustrated and full of sidebars, the book gives readers a choice of going through the whole thing at once or focusing on favorite sections. Each chapter includes such features as: profiles of biblical women and how they lived up to (or failed to live up to) the ideal of the Christian mother or daughter; glossary segments telling how to say "Mom" in different languages; fun crafts to do or share with mothers; questions to ask your mother (or to encourage her to ask you); Q&A's on coping with common mother-daughter problems; short stories illustrating the key points; and reflection questions. The book is packaged with a bonus gift-a colorful bracelet.
Readers of this book might also like Hilton's It's All about Dad & Me or any of the other books in the Christian Girl's Guide series: The Christian Girl's Guide to Being Your Best; The Christian Girl's Guide to Friendship; The Christian Girl's Guide to the Bible.
