Going Downhill

Girl's Life used to be a wonderful magazine, with articles that were helpful and fun. However, lately Girl's Life has been turning the focus of the magazine from the helpful and fun side of you to the gossipy and fashion-obsessed side of you. Their latest issue has been the worst. There was a three-page article on how to give the perfect kiss! Along with that was an equally long article on how to get the "perfect look" and three quizzes, which would normally have been okay but these ones were stupid. What really gets me is that on their website, they have a question of the week, and one week's question was, "Do you think girls ages 12-15 should be kissing?" (The question, of course, was based on angry calls from parents about the kissing article.) That wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for the fact that they say Girl's Life is for girls ages 10-15, not 12-15! If you can stand the gossipy articles, then you can keep on subscribing, but otherwise I would suggest that you cancel your subscription and try American Girl, Discovery Girls, or New Moon.

Great Alternative to the Superficiality of Teen Girls' mags

It's unfair that, as one of the smaller magazines, Girl's Life is often overlooked as one of the best, most positive magazines for girls in their pre-to early teens. I read this magazine from ages 10-12, and greatly enjoyed it. Although it appears they've since gone for a more mainstream, teen-friendly look, they've always stood by content that's fun and engaging teen fare- Advice, Fashion, Entertainment, Quizzes, etc. But the difference about this content is that Girl's Life injects it with a healthy, refreshing realism. Self-esteem is a key issue here- sure, they inform you of the latest fashions, but they always picture real-looking girls, and don't tell you your social life will be over if you don't own the latest miniskirt. Sure, boys are discussed, but they're never going to make a cover story or take precedence over articles about friends and family. Add to all this great stories and a great pen-pals feature, and you have the thinking girl's teen magazine.

It's good but it should...

take out all the fitness infos and advices to make the magazine age- appropriate. The stories are good and the celeb info are just right for celeb lovers and people who would like to skip this part. If you have only seen the cover of the mag, you would get the impression that girls life is a teen celeb mag, but actually, this magazine only features a little bit of celeb, which is a good thing because GL has tons of fun stuff that no other mag has. I recommend parents to buy one issue to try first.