Mates: Making Them & Retaining Them (American Lady® Wellbeing)

Thoughtful, clear, realistic, approachable book
This is a fantastic book. I bought it for my 7 yr old, who currently doesn’t really have many friendship troubles – as a way to help her prepare. We have been reading a section or two each night together and she absolutely loves it. She thanks and hugs and kisses me each time, with a deep appreciation for thinking of helping her learn about this stuff. Apparently, although she doesn’t have many friendship problems, she has indeed seen some of these issues and wondered how to handle them better. This addresses how to be a great friend and how to solve problems thoughtfully and assertively. It also sets up realistic expectations (e.g., not one fired can fill all your needs – there are different friends for different needs; you will get into arguments with friends and that’s okay and there are ways you can resolve them, etc.). I really wish they made the same exact book for boys. My 10 yr old son could really benefit from reading the same exact thing but because it’s so clearly geared toward girls, I know he won’t, which is a really shame. Boys struggle with the same friendship issues and questions.

It gives lots of great tips on how to be and make friends
I purchased this item for my daughter, who at the time was 7 years old. She was having a little bit of a bullying problem at school at the time. We have read it together several times. It gives lots of great tips on how to be and make friends. Conversation starters if you the new girl at school (which at the time my daughter was). It also gives lots of examples of what not to do, like being too clingy or bragging. There are lots of great real world examples the girls can follow. And all of this in the great format that American Girl does so well. Young girls can really relate to this material and use it in real live. I am glad to say that my daughter was able to use the communication skills in this book, stand up for herself and even make a friend out of someone that was giving her a hard time. Win/Win all the way around.

A must for all girls to read
I’ve been reading several of these books to my daughter in the hopes of helping her reach a higher emotional intelligence and survive the drama of tweenagehood. These books are beautifully written with amazing tools and psychology behind them. I have recommended them to every mother I know. I would have loved to have had these growing up. They have done an amazing job of simplifying personal developmental concepts that most kids don’t have access to until much later in life usually. I love the idea of investing in my daughters soft skills and helping her exceed on life through more then just what they teach you in school.

Great Book for Teaching Girls the Valuable Basics About Friendship
Friends: Making Them and Keeping(American Girl)This book gives simple yet good definitions of the word friends, and it has some pretty colorful pictures to go along with them. It shares examples of acceptable acts of friends and “trouble starters” that will put friendships on a not-so-good-path.
I work with girls and it is clear that many have unrealistic ideas of what a friends is. Maybe this is one of the reasons girls find themselves in unhealthy relationships when they get older. Starting girls while they are young by providing them with healthy positive views of friends is great way to establish a solid foundation for good relationships in general.
Bonuses of this book include the cute little posters with helpful captions of friends together AND a few pages of great activities and crafts for friends to enjoy. If you are looking for ideas that keep girls busy and happy during birthday and pajama parties, this is your book!

Wonderful books, have may of these American girl book all are well written. Thank you keep up the great work

This has been a wonderful aid to help discuss making friends with my reserved 8 year old daughter. She has genuinely loved reading it and brings it over to discuss with me. We sit down and revisit chapters she has read and it has brought us together as well. It’s been weight off my shoulders having real practical tips to helping my lovely girl mix more and break through those self-conscious barriers. It delightfully and gently approaches friendship issues in a non-patronising way. A REAL help. I wish we had discovered it earlier – I would think it would be useful for mature 6year olds right through to children revisiting it in the first year of secondary school. While it is more geared to girls, my 6 year old son enjoys reading it with us too and discussing some of the issues it raises.

Bought for my daughter starting secondary school after the summer. She is on the autistic spectrum and anxieties are running higher than usual the closer August is coming and she finds it super hard and tricky socially to make and keep friends who she understands. Still ‘working’ through the book as reading is on her terms!!