Gossip Girl, A-List, Au Pairs, Oh My!

By Vicki Courtney
 
Move over Judy Blume and Beverly Cleary….there’s a new wave of teen literature catching the attention of our teens. If you haven’t noticed, reading has picked up a bit with tweens and teens of late. Somehow, amidst the bombardment of media, our kids are actually taking time to read. But what exactly ARE they reading?
 
Recently, I was alerted to the Gossip Girl series by a concerned mom in Kansas whose daughter wanted to read them because as she informed her mother, “all my friends are reading them!” After reading a few articles touting the book series success, I decided to read one for myself. Needless to say, it wasn’t pretty. I felt it was urgent to let mothers know of my findings, especially considering the current popularity of this series. This series of books is directly marketed to teen girls and follows the lives of self-proclaimed “rich girls” who attend private prep-school in New York City. The girls drink, smoke pot and casually “hook-up” with guys, sometimes even with each others boyfriends. The “Sex in the City” for teens, if you will.
 
I am not the only one to report on the raciness and moral ambivalence present in these risqué reads for teen girls. Every one from The LA Times to The Orlando Sentinel has recently published articles exposing the raciness and controversy surrounding today’s provocative teen fiction for girls. In the last month alone, I have received more than ten articles about this topic in my in-box.
 
The Gossip Girl series has sold more than 2.2 million in the US. The last three installments have debuted at No. 1 on the NY Times children’s best-seller list. To help paint the picture of these novels, I’ll share with you some sample tidbits from these books. WARNING: THE FOLLOWING QUOTES CONTAIN OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE, however in order to “alert” you to the lack of virtue found in the Gossip Girl series, I find it necessary to give you sentences  that appear in the book I read with bleeped out words in the place of the actual expletives used.

“Says here eight out of ten guys prefer a gorgeous girl with average-size breasts over an average girl with supersize t***,’ Chuck elaborated.”

After sleeping together… “[Nate] lit the joint he’d just rolled, took a hit and passed it to Brigid.”
 
“Laura Salmon giggled. ‘Maybe she’s got, like, rugburn—you know, from all the sex.’”
 
“Nate grabbed his champagne and polished it off. F***! He cursed silently. F***, f***, f***.”
 
“Dan’s instinct was to tell Chuck to go f*** himself.”
 
“The only decision they had to make was whether to ‘do it’ again, or wait a few minutes, then do it.”

And this was only a fraction of references to sex, drugs, and vulgarity in the book. The author of this series, Cecily von Ziegesar, was recently quoted in several newspapers saying, “I was reading that first chapter [of her 7th book in the series], at a reading in Toronto and looked up at all these moms in the audience. And I thought, ‘Wow, this is really dirty.’ I’d never really thought about it that way before.”

Publishers, and authors alike, claim that the mature material found in novels such as the Gossip Girl, A-List, Au Pairs or Clique series only reflect the current culture of today’s teens. Cindy Eagen, editor at Little, Brown & Co., the publisher of the Gossip Girl series, defends the content by saying, “In 'Gossip Girl,' you've got sophisticated subject matter, with the girls having anxiety about dating and getting into college. But they're all doing the same things that high schoolers are doing, partying behind their parents' backs."

Wow, I’d love to have coffee with Ms. Eagen and remind her that she should be careful about making sweeping generalizations about today’s teenagers. In fact, surveys show that 30% of teens are not drinking, a little over half are not having sex, and 60% are not doing drugs. How dare she make such inaccurate and offensive assumptions about approximately one half of our teen girls!

Liz Perle is editor in chief for Commonsense Media, a group that reviews books, film, and media for parents. She claims, “My daughter, at 15, can handle things I had not heard of until college. We make a mistake as parents when we look at today's 15-year-olds with our 15-year-old eyes. The whole culture has moved." Give me a break, Ms. Perle! Sorry, but I’ll pass on the lame parenting advice.  You just earned a spot on my “wimpy parent” list.  I have higher standards for my 15 year-old daughter.

While the sad truth may be that teens have been exposed to risqué behavior (even if just through media), it does not excuse peddling suggestive material to them, not to mention purchasing it for them.
 
The questionable content in these teen books has become center of debate among parents, educators and bookstores alike. For example, in France, the Gossip Girl series is classified as adult fiction because no children’s publisher there would pick up the rights! In the US, however, you’ll still find it in the teen section. Not a big surprise.
 
In a culture that continues to promote moral relativism and a blasé attitude toward immorality, we cannot be passive in our children’s exposure to it. If your teen is asking to read secular literature, make sure you are comfortable with its content.
 
Here are some tips for helping your teen choose appropriate reading material:
 
1. Start Early
Talk with your preteen and teen children about your guidelines and expectations when it comes to their reading materials. Remember to always explain the “why” behind your boundaries. For example, should my 15 year-old daughter express a desire to read a series such as Gossip Girls, I would tell her, “While I realize that many of your friends are allowed to read the series (grumble, grumble), I don’t want you to be exposed to characters who go behind their parents backs and drink, swear, do drugs, and have casual sex on regular basis. The more you are exposed to situations like that, the more desensitized you will become to what is right and what is wrong. Remember that Philippians 4:8 reminds us to dwell on that which is ‘pure, lovely, right, noble, and admirable.’” I would go on to explain to my daughter that just as I would not allow her to hang out with girls who behave like the girls in the above mentioned series, I do not want her to hang out with them in a fiction world either.
 
2. Stay Informed
Fortunately, with the Internet, it is easy to keep up-to-date with the latest teen books and authors. Before you allow your daughter to read a secular teen fiction series, google the title with the word “review,” “caution” or “concern.” I am in the habit of checking out the reader reviews on Amazon.com. Keep in mind that most of the reviews on teen fiction are coming from teen girls so they may rate the book highly. Look for the reviews with one or two stars because often, they will unveil concerns about content or plot. The more informed you are, the easier it will be for you to explain why certain books are inappropriate for your teen. When in doubt, read one for yourself. It’s worth the time and attention before you giving your daughter a green light to read the whole series!
 
3. Empower your teen
Teach your daughter to think critically from an early age. It is only a matter of time before she is exposed to inappropriate material whether through books or the media in general. I have taught my kids to ask themselves “Would this bring honor to God?” when exposed to material that runs contrary to their values.
 
I realize that Christian parents will often have varying philosophies of what is acceptable and what is unacceptable when it comes to media influences targeted at their kids. We can’t fight every battle out there, however, recent studies reveal that there is an increase in sexual promiscuity among kids/teens who are allowed to watch MTV on a regular basis. It would only make sense that the same would be true regarding provocative teen fiction. The more our girls are exposed to trashy teen behaviors, the greater the chances they will become desensitized.
 
Christian fiction has greatly improved over the years and there are some quality fiction series on the market today. Here are some recommendations when it comes to more wholesome Christian fiction:

Melody Carlson’s Diary of a Teenage Girl series

Nancy Rue’s Nama Beach High and Raise the Flag series

Elizabeth Prentiss’ Stepping Heavenward (My daughter and I are reading this book together at bedtime—it is a charming classic!)

Francine Rivers’ novels (Geared to adults, but suited for older teens)