Rating: 
Summary: Own it, can not put it down, not so much what I expected!...
Review: A friend of mine was reading the book and suggested it to me. As I started to browse through her book,I decided I would buy three copies one for me and 2 for my friends. When I looked at Amazon, it was listed as a self help book, and I was thinking self help I dont really need selp help, nor if I were at a bookstore be caught dead in the self help section. This self help title scared me a bit and made me wonder what I was getting in to. Since the book arrived the other day I can not put it down, it is a resource of all the practical common sense information a parent or friend probably has told you at one time or another. But the author goes beyond just giving the advice but explains why it's important and how/why it works. I am a junior in college and ask myself atleast once a week if not several hundred times "Am I going nuts?" and this book really helps you understand that everyone is really in the same boat and that its all in the manner in which you except it. I found the section on dating/relationships/men very helpful as it is a very confusing dating world and again the author gives great advice. I would recommend this book to anyone in college/going to college/post graduate as it has some very practical and important information for everyone. I think I am going to by six more copies for my roomates! Definatly a great buy!
Rating:
Summary: Big Sister-Type Dialogue is Just What I Needed!
Review: I am so glad I found this book when I turned 22. At the time, there was so much "stuff" going on in my life and Julia Bourland helped me to see that it was all completely normal and it encouraged me to talk to others about my feelings. Her big sister-type role gave words and phrases to the thoughts and feelings I had been experiencing but couldn't quite explain to anyone else. I go back to the book frequently when I need a pick-me-up. I'm getting married in May and just picked up "Hitched: The Guide to the First Year of Marriage" to prepare me for what to expect. If it's anything like the first book, I know I'll come out of it enlightened!
Rating:
Summary: Fun book, Great advice!
Review: I bought this book as a pick-me-up during my post-graduation job-searching blues and found the personal stories enclosed comforting and the advice provided inspiring and helpful. Bourland touches upon many topics significant to 20-somethings from the various stages of finding a job and starting a career to the various stages of relationships and being single. While nothing here is particularly earth-shattering news, the advice is good, common-sense stuff that is both encouraging and realistic. I have bought several copies as graduation presents for friends and flip through my own copy frequently when I am feeling down or frustrated with the way my early twenties are going. This is a great little book that belongs on every 20-something girl's bookshelf.
Rating:
Summary: A Practical, yet Humorous Guide for the Rest of Us!
Review: I cannot even put into words how much I love(d) this book. I found it immensely helpful in dealing with topics such as finances after college, dealing with friends getting engaged/married, and exceling in your career to name just a few. Bourland's advice is tried-and-true, and I found it to be a great consolation in considering realistic expectations for myself. I laughed, I took notes, then I laughed more ;) Very realistic and helpful advice, this book was refreshing to read and I have recommended it to every 20-something I know. Sorry, my copy isn't for sale!
Rating: 
Summary: Fun, but not what I expected
Review: I liked this book... There is insightful information on finding a job. It made me feel better when I had a hard time finding a job. But some of it got a little blah. I found myself skipping pages out of boredom, which is never a good sign. Sadly, Bourland spends a majority of the book on dating. This is what I ended up skipping a lot of. That said, there are definitely parts that I am sure I will go back and re-read whenever I'm down.Recommended for those who are recent graduates without a job and/or boyfriend!
Rating:
Summary: There are no words to express my gratefulness
Review: I read most of the reviews below, and some of them were so right on. This book did acknowledge and answer those questions and emotions I have been feeling lately but not quite able to explain to others. I'm 22, work full-time and go to school full-time, have this new understanding and appreciation for my mom and my girlfriends, etc. Don't get me wrong, I am loving it, but after reading this book - I love it so much more. Words really cannot explain the wonderful feeling I get from reading this book. Go get yours today - you will be thankful!!
Rating: 
Summary: down-to-earth advice ,but couldn't relate to some chapters
Review: Julia Bourland writes in a non-preachy, "I've been there before" kind of way that is reassuring and comforting. I especially found her chapters on careers worthwile. For any woman approaching or experiencing entry-level hell(especially in a media-related job)this chapter is really helpful. However, it's too short. She devotes more time to a discussion on dating and how to find the perfect mate. Since I have been in a healthy 3 1/2 year relationshp, I skipped at least two chapters in the book. Furthermore, her advice on these matters (I know because I skimmed them)is a bit self-evident. So, all in all, I think "Go-girl guide" is a good reference. I will definitely re-read certain sections when I need a confidence boost or words of motivation to keep me sane during my nightmare job search.
Rating:
Summary: A book no twenty-something woman should be without
Review: Society tells us our 20s are filled with fun, freedom and fearlessness...well don't believe everything that you're told! Us twenty-something gals are not advised that life isn't one long party, freedom is expensive and stress is normal. Thank heaven for Julia Bourland's book, "The Go-Girl Guide." Bourland leaves nothing unsolved, she covers every issue from body image to boyfriends with humor and realistic advice. Bourland's honesty about her own mental meltdowns during her 20s make her words credible,
"To every other twenty-something out there, I offer this reassuring bit of reality: despite the lack of evidence from the media, most of us are just as lost, stressed, lonely, angry, envious, confused and neurotic as you."
Our 20s are by no means as glamorous as a music video, but we don't have to be victims of the 20-something blues. Bourland reminds us models are airbrushed, foreign films cast healthier looking woman and you're not a hairy beast if your bikini line doesn't look like the advertisement model's.
If it's money (or lack there of) that makes you want to scream, "The Go-Girl Guide" holds the answers to avoiding credit debt and saving a few pennies. After reading the chapter, "Our Finances and Other Loose Ends," you'll vow never to charge the credits cards that come so conveniently in the mail.
But if it's the job hunt that has you frazzled, have no fear, Bourland's book is here. She puts into perspective the months it takes to apply, the significance of contacts, the act of good resume writing and the emotions of a first interview. When finishing the chapter, "The Job Hunt," even rejection doesn't seem so scary.
"The Go-Girl Guide," makes a great gift for any girl who is figuring herself out in college, struggling with her first career or who needs a little reassurance that her feelings aren't unheard of.
Bourland's book is extremely reader-friendly, so feel free to open up to any chapter that interests you. No matter what order it's read, you can find helpful advice from front to back.
Bourland reminds her readers, "twenty-something turbulence is all part of the flight toward becoming an emotionally rich woman," and that's where she can help!
If you know a girl in her 20s, do her a favor and buy her this book!
Rating:
Summary: very practical and applicable suggestions - worth reading
Review: The Go-Girl Guide is an excellent book to turn to in times of emotional what-to-do what-to-do crisis. Why? Because the advice here is specific enough to follow and therefore help you focus on doing something.
As opposed to many self help books which offer general advice, the advice in The Go-Girl Guide is specific and can be acted on now. And you don't have to know where you want to go. The advice for that is on how to try new things and get the most from internships - a kind of career sampler.
For example what I'm most interested in right about now is career. Bourland's discussion of things to think about when you are considering careers is very nicely balanced and includes some good suggestions that wouldn't necessarily just occur to someone in my demographic. For example she advises contacting an older woman in the prospective field and interviewing her about her career. The questions she suggests are wise and include ones dealing with balancing work and family which isn't something the average career orient 20 something woman thinks hard about.
One big flaw with The Go-Girl Guide is the very heavy focus on sex (and the author's tendency to define herself in terms of her present boyfriend). There is so much focus on sex. For example the chapter I liked so much and discussed above is 16 pages long, while the chapter on having an orgasm is 18 pages long. There is also a discussion of one-night-stands and other advice that maybe isn't the best plan for every girl in her 20's. Four of fourteen chapters are dedicated to dating and sex. Advice about boys isn't a bad thing, but the advice isn't coming from the best person. I skimmed over the dating sections, because elsewhere in the book Bourland has a tendency to refer to her present boyfriend WAY TOO MUCH. Being in love is great and all but it is so important to be sovereign and I get the feeling that she isn't. Probably it is a personal weakness of the author to define herself in terms of men and only to see it later. In fact she expresses sadness over past failed relationships.
The advice put forward in Go-Girl Guide is either very practical and helpful in that it can be put into action immediately, or it is about boys and not such good advice because it comes from an insecure person. The book is definitely worth getting and taking advice from. Just ignore the advice about boys. And as for sex advice, you are on the internet aren't you?
Rating:
Summary: Thought Provoking!
Review: This book has inspired a great many conversations with friends and with my husband. Although I did skip the chapters on dating I found the rest of the book to be quite informative. The section on careers is really great, it gives you the sense that your feelings are not unjustified but also lets you know that everyone goes through this stage. I found the section on relationships with friends, parents, and sibilings to be especially helpful in identifying some of the issues that we are currently dealing with. And the chapter on Body Image is an absolute must to read for everyone!
|
