Rookie, or power to teenage girls!

I have recently started reading Rookie (thanks to Anahita's recommendation), and it has been a fabulous form of procrastination - I have lost far too much time reading its numerous articles on a wide variety of topics, so now I have to justify myself by explaining just how awesome this magazine is.

First of all, it is the project of a fifteen year old girl (yes, fifteen, you read that right) called Tavi Gevison - a smart, cultured, witty fifteen year old who is neither smug or condescending, and is pretty much the epitome of cool. There is a bubbly excitement and sincerity to all the articles, whether they are about real life situations, advice or pop culture, that makes you feel like you are talking to friends who you admire; aesthetically, it is also a triumph of coolness.

I am generally not a fan of girls magazines - actually, I look down on most of them, for they choose to talk to women as if our only interests were make-up, shoes and clothes, vacuous celebrities and getting a boyfriend (most of all getting a boyfriend, which should apparently be every self-respecting girl's single, desperate goal in life). It is a prime example of misogyny in the media: the image of women promoted by these magazines is one of frailty (in all levels) and submission to male authority, all under a cover of pseudo girl-power.

On the contrary, Rookie takes a truly empowering and inspiring line. It does include style tips and eye candy, but as part of a broader palette of self-expression, and giving centre stage to diversity (the models aren't all stick-thin, there are a variety of different styles on display, and the focus on how you ant to look, not how you should look). The same applies to the real-life advice given, which, in my opinion, is very positive and relevant to teenage girls' lives. As for the cultural sections, they truly set this magazine apart: they are often quite long and in-depth, showing engaged personal perspectives, and lead you to tons of quirky/fun/interesting/thought-provoking material.

The result? Teenage girls shown as interesting, diverse, socially and culturally engaged individuals. Prettiness, insecurities, personal discoveries, all play a part - after all, feminism must, in my opinion, be about women of all ages being able to express themselves freely - but it is made clear that women have so much more to give than that. Rookie makes this point brilliantly, and it is an excellent magazine of girl empowerment.