Bunk 9's Guide to Growing Up is a bright fresh approach to a universal topic - the art and science of growing up for girls. This book is presented in a notebook style with various color printing, drawings, illustrations that appeal to young ladies hitting puberty. It covers a wide spectrum of issues, presented as multicultural with girls that develop faster than others, all presented as a group that has gone to camp together for years and the changes they face. This is a non-fiction, almost in loose-leaf page journal style. It has a vibrant upbeat approach that presents the truth of the changes that happen to a girl's body when they become women. This covers other issues like hair care and hygiene, shaving, zits and lots more. Perfect for parenting collections, school nurses, for parents to give to their daughters before these changes happen. Parents, be warned to look at the book and read it for yourself before you give it to your daughter. It is best to come from you than for them to hear about these things through the grapevine. Then, somewhere in the middle, it discusses what is happening with boys at the same time. Be prepared for questions.

Set out in a really fun way, telling the story of the girls in 'bunk 9' returning to camp the next year and noticing all the changes their bodies have made. The text is fun and bright, printed to look like handwriting on note paper. The book is split into several sections, such as 'breasts' and 'periods', making it easy to flick to the part of the book you need. The book really does address puberty and 'growing up' in such a fun and interesting way, making the topics less taboo for young people. There are plenty of tips, quotes from the girls in bunk 9 (whether fictitious or not, these really help to give something for the reader to relate to) and useful diagrams. The book has thought of everything, and I really am impressed. If only I'd had a book like this when I was growing up! This is the bible for teen girls for sure.

Camp Silver Moon's bunk nine girls are here to teach you all about growing up what's ahead.

The girls discuss and compare experiences throughout the book as no one person's development will be a copy and paste story. Their diary talks us through the stages they went through to grow up in their early teens to now always set around the camp narrative.


Starting back at age twelve, early puberty calls for the essential development growth or lack of we each experience. The girls were sometimes jealous that others had developed faster, which is always okay, stages of change be it growing body hair, using deodorant, spots appearing, breasts appearing as well as your internal changes in hormones causing more emotions and feelings as well as causing your period to begin.



The book has styling tips for your hair type and how to keep it clean and healthy as well as beginning to use and have an interest in make-up and how to handle the varying acne types you may encounter as well as how to choose the perfect first bra for you.


The book talks about gender issues, how you feel vs what body you have been born into and how you should always ask a trusted adult in confidence to advise you if you feel you want to.


The best thing about this book is that every girl could benefit from it, it would also be useful for single parents or embarrassed about having the talk parents as they exist! My parents couldn't deal but I had my school sex education class from age nine to teach me and my parents were happy that way. This would just reassure parents their girls are sure of what's normal and ahead for them in a concise and friendly way!


Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!