(January 25, 2005) — Mountain High was finally open for business. The powdery white slopes brought together the young and the old, experts and beginners and everyone else in between. And where was I as all this excitement was happening? Not anywhere close. So what do cool, hip-with-it friends do when they get left behind in Glendale as everyone else hits the slopes for a fun, carefree day? We head to Barnes & Noble to read Hamlet for English class of course! We get ourselves copies of Hamlet and find a cozy empty spot in the children’s section. What we discovered next would give men all over the world some insight in understanding women a little bit better. We notice one particular shelf was full of books from the American Girl Library. A friend of mine, particularly cynical about women, picked up a book titled A Smart Girl’s Guide to Boys: Surviving Crushes, Staying True to Yourself and Other Stuff. Maybe we aren’t in tune with the generations of children after us and their life styles, but this book even made my female companions question the rapid rate kids, especially girls, grow up these days. Inside, this book was separated into sections full of tips and tricks when it comes to boys. It started off with a section called “Conversation Starters” and outlined possible things to talk about with that new boy in her life. It quickly flowed to tips on “how to get them to notice you” and then to ways on “how to tell him you like him.” By this section, all we could do was laugh in disbelief that they are actually willing to sell this to ten year olds. There was also a couple of quizzes, the first one a five-question quiz that will help that pre-pubescent daughter of someone answer the age-old question of “Are you boy crazy?” Since this book plays out like a step-by-step survival manual, if things were going as planned, by the two-thirds mark one conveniently has advice on “things to do when you go out.” Innocent tips such as walking, mini-golfing, rollerblading and swimming were given. To our amazement, drinking at cocktail bars, clubbing and exchanging wedding vows weren’t given as possible things to do. A section titled “surviving crushes, staying true to yourself and other stuff” smoothly brings the book to a close. All we could say was that American capitalism sure trains women young. From my experience in English class discussions, women, naïve and less experienced ones at least, seem to think all boys are shaped from the same cookie cutter. Their thoughts are dictated by accepted cultural stereotypes, stereotypes fueled by books such as A Smart Girl’s Guide to Boys. The title embodies the arrogant belief that being “a smart girl” and knowing those stereotypes automatically means they understand boys. Eventually, as puberty hits and the middle school mentality takes over, these stereotypes evolve to believing men are controlled more from their testosterone circulation than any anything else. Though it may be true to a certain extent, men are no more controlled by their testosterone in their decision making as women are by their estrogen relapses. I don’t know the actual science experiments on this, but it’s my opinion, so it’s right. This book is a gateway drug to future publications such as Cosmopolitan or Redbook , which are pretty much “smart girl” guidebooks for the adult set that continue to perpetuate bad information about the opposing sexes. Going to the American Girl website, their mission statement reads, “At American Girl, we’re committed to helping you nurture your daughter’s individuality, intellectual curiosity, and imagination.” In reality, American Girl is setting women back instead of assisting them to progress under the standards of society.