Kaz Cooke - Girl Stuff 8–12: from the number one go-to advisor for Australian girls and womens health issues

For this book I drew on the contributions of all the girls, other experts and consultants who helped with the latest edition of the original book, : Your Full-on Guide to the Teen Years .

Julie Gibbs was the original commissioning publisher and a great supporter and facilitator of all things Girl Stuff. Special thanks for the edition are due to Kristin Otto (for the idea), Rachel Scully and Clementine Edwards (editery) (I wonder if theyll change that), Anyez Lindop (publicising), Adam Laszczuk (book design), Susan McClean (online and phones), Kristin Gill (for being generally ace plus books info), Dr Rod Phillips (skin), Neil Branch (Federal Health Departmentery), Susan Carland (expertery), Ben Ball (striding about and saying yes as required), the staff of Post Pre-Press Typesetters in Queensland (typesetting whizzbangery), Kevin Whyte and Georgina Ogilvie (general whirlery). And especially Jude, Ciara, Molly, Poppy, Alannah, Jen, Alicia, Harriet and Vi for book and movie suggestions.

Relevant consultants for the original Girl Stuff and its continuing updates included more than 4000 girls who answered an online survey, original researcher Emma Moss, and adolescent specialist Professor Susan Sawyer. Dermatology consultants: Tanya Gilmour, Josie Yeatman, Belinda Welsh, Ruth Morley. Drugs consultant: Paul Dillon of Drug and Alcohol Research and Training Australia, school visitor extraordinaire. Mental health consultants: Dr Louise Newman, Monica Hadges, Dr Jayashri Kulkarni. Online consultant: Michelle Blanchard. Food consultants: Maureen Humphrey, clinical specialist, Dr Rick Kausman, Dr Zoe McCallum, specialist nurse Stephanie Campbell. Activity consultant: Dr Geraldine Naughton. Puberty and reproductive health consultants: Dr Melissa Cameron, Dr Susan Bagshaw, Annie Rose, Donna Tilley, Angela Steele. Psychologist consultants: Lorraine Rose, Antony Gleeson and Dr Helen McGrath. For a full list of consultants for each edition, see the big-sister book : Your Full-on Guide to the Teen Years .

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Penguin Books is part of the Penguin Random House group of companies

whose addresses can be found at global.penguinrandomhouse.com.

First published by Penguin Group (Australia), 2016

Adapted in part from Girl Stuff, first published 2007

Text and illustrations copyright Kaz Cooke 2007, 2016

The moral right of the author has been asserted.

All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

Designed by Adam Laszczuk Penguin Group (Australia)

penguin.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-76014-271-1

INTRO

Hello, girl! Welcome to being a girl well, all right, youve been a girl for a while now. This book is all about the stuff youll need to know as you get a bit older. It will be your friend through the changes as you head towards the teenage years. And before you scream into a pillow at the word teenager, dont worry youre still a kid. And thats exactly what youre supposed to be. (If anybody asks for your job description, say, Im a kid! Actually, if anyone asks for your job description, give them a hard stare and edge away.)

Some body changes might already have started happening to you or to your friends. Or, maybe none of them have happened yet. Its always good to know whats coming, even if you dont know exactly when. Periods, body hair, pimples, mean girls, wanting to use phone apps to stay in touch with friends: this book is going to help you with all of that stuff .

Changes dont feel so freaky when you know that they happen to everyone and when you get used to them.

This book, , talks to you about all the things you might feel embarrassed to talk to anyone else about. (So okay, this book wont talk out loud, but thats good, right? You can keep it under your screaming pillow and always read it in secret if you want to.)