Wiseman, Rosalind 1969-

PERSONAL:

Born 1969; married; children: two sons.Education: Occidental College, B.A. Hobbies and other interests: Tang Soo Do Karate.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Washington, DC. Home and office—P.O. Box 11263, Washington, DC 20008-9998.Agent—Levine Greenberg Literary Agency, Inc., 307 7th Ave., Ste. 2407, New York, NY 10001.E-mail—rosalind@rosalindwiseman.com.

CAREER:

Writer and speaker. Empower Program, a national violence-prevention program, Washington, DC, co-founder, president, 1992-2000, contractor, 2000-06; Family Circle magazine, contributing editor and monthly columnist; AOL Kids & Family Coach; public speaker at universities, corporations, schools, and associations.

Has appeared on national television and radio programs, including the Today Show, Oprah, CBS Evening News with Dan Rather, Montel Williams, Gordon Liddy Show, Good Morning America, Nightline, and National Public Radio.

MEMBER:

Corporate Alliance to End Partner Violence; American Bar Association's Domestic Violence Committee; Violence Against Women Act's Subcommittee on Girls and School Violence.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Twenty-First Century Fellowship, Donner Foundation; Lanterns Social Justice Award, Black Women's Bar Association of Los Angeles.

WRITINGS:

NONFICTION

Defending Ourselves: A Guide to Prevention, Self-Defense, and Recovery from Rape, illustrated by James Edwards, Noonday Press (New York, NY), 1994.

Queen Bees & Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends, and Other Realities of Adolescence, Crown (New York, NY), 2002.

(With Elizabeth Rapoport) Queen Bee Moms & Kingpin Dads: Dealing with the Parents, Teachers, Coaches, and Counselors Who Can Make—or Break—Your Child's Future, Crown (New York, NY), 2006.

Contributor to periodicals, including Education Digest, Town and Country, and Principal Leadership magazine.

ADAPTATIONS:

The movie Mean Girls was based on the book Queen Bees & Wannabes.

SIDELIGHTS:

Rosalind Wiseman is the co-founder and president of the Empower Program, a national, nonprofit educational organization that aids youths in stopping violence. Wiseman began her career in violence prevention when she was asked to teach self-defense to high school girls. A second-degree black belt in Karate, Wiseman agreed, and her experience encouraged her to continue teaching. Since that time, Wiseman has worked with numerous organizations, and has been featured in magazines, newspapers, and various national television shows such as Oprah andGood Morning America.

Wiseman published her first book, Defending Ourselves: A Guide to Prevention, Self-Defense, and Recovery from Rape, in 1994. She followed that title with Queen Bees & Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends, and Other Realities of Adolescence, a guide to help parents understand the powerful influence that cliques have on shaping their adolescent daughter's life. The author uses anecdotes and quotes from teenage girls in the Empower Program to supplement her arguments. Wiseman also identifies different styles of parenting, provides advice on talking to teenagers, and addresses other problems concerning boys, sex, and drugs.

Reviews of Queen Bees & Wannabes were mixed. Meda Chesney-Lind, writing in the Women's Review of Books, pointed out that Wiseman's "sensible advice is offset by long sections on clique dynamics," however, Chesney-Lind also acknowledged that "there is no doubt that Wiseman really listened to girls." Likewise, New Statesman critic Kathryn Hughes felt that Wiseman "is far more plausible on the problems than she is on possible solutions," but also stated, "Wiseman reminds us that female adolescence is, in fact, nasty, brutal and nothing like short enough." On the other hand, Booklist contributor Gillian Engberg maintained that the book offers "admirable, ground-breaking insight into an all-too-common issue," while a Publishers Weekly reviewer commented on the author's "straightforward humor, sound advice and practical approach."

In 2006 Wiseman published Queen Bee Moms & Kingpin Dads: Dealing with the Parents, Teachers, Coaches, and Counselors Who Can Make—or Break—Your Child's Future, cowritten with Elizabeth Rapoport. In the book, Wiseman examines parents' responses to situations in their children's lives affects their children. She gives advice on getting involved in your child's conflicts, and how to approach other adults such as principals, coaches, and teachers. Many reviewers praised the book. A Publishers Weekly critic felt that "Wiseman wants to show people how to behave better." Additionally, Linda Beck, writing inLibrary Journal, commented, "ours is a messy, get-ahead-now world. Wiseman makes sense of it."

In a statement posted on her Home Page, Wiseman commented on her career: "One of the reasons I love working with kids and teens is that they let me know pretty quickly when I am on to something or when I'm wasting their time." Wiseman continued: "While I don't like having experiences where my students tell me I'm failing, I listen carefully to them when I do so I can make it better. Sometimes I fail spectacularly but I always get up again and try to do better next time."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, February 1, 1995, Mary Ellen Sullivan, review of Defending Ourselves: A Guide to Prevention, Self-Defense, and Recovery from Rape, p. 979; April 15, 2002, Gillian Engberg, "Queens of Mean," review of Queen Bees & Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends, and Other Realities of Adolescence, p. 1368.

Library Journal, May 15, 2002, Linda Beck, review of Queen Bees & Wannabes, p. 121; February 1, 2006, Linda Beck, review of Queen Bee Moms & Kingpin Dads: Dealing with the Parents, Teachers, Coaches, and Counselors Who Can Make—or Break—Your Child's Future, p. 96.

New Statesman, August 12, 2002, Kathryn Hughes, "Girl Talk," review of Queen Bees & Wannabes,p. 38.

Publishers Weekly, April 1, 2002, review of Queen Bees & Wannabes, p. 75; December 12, 2005, review of Queen Bee Moms & Kingpin Dads,p. 50.

Women's Review of Books, November, 2002, Meda Chesney-Lind, "The Meaning of Mean," review ofQueen Bees & Wannabes, p. 20.

ONLINE

Rosalind Wiseman Home Page,http://www.rosalindwiseman.com(June 28, 2006).

Soapbox Web site,http://www.soapboxinc.com/(June 28, 2006), biography of author.

[Sketch reviewed by assistant, Emily Bartek.]