★★★★★

Rating: Highly Recommended

Childhood Unlimited: Parenting Beyond the Gender Bias by Virginia Méndez is an eye-opening non-fiction exploration and guide to parenting without using the gender biases that we have been taught from a young age. 

Méndez gives insightful yet thought-provoking examples of how girls and boys are taught to associate themselves with these societal constructs and attributes from birth. But, most importantly, Méndez offers readers tips on how to pay attention to, and change, their behaviour regarding their biases. 

From the perceived genders of book characters, where the gender is never revealed to female characters being placed in caring roles more than their male counterparts, Childhood Unlimited highlights the discrepancies in our society. It’s all told from the lens of a mother trying to teach her children in the best way to prepare them for a world that already has them placed in specific roles based on their sex. 

It was eye-opening to read this book and learn more about how gender roles play an even more significant part in our lives than we initially thought. Readers will begin to see parallels to what Méndez mentions in the book regarding how our society places gender labels on items and notions that shouldn’t have one. 

One example, is how genders are defined, as seen in the realm of Disney products. The book argues that while all children are the main audience for Disney, girls are the company's main aim in terms of marketing and merchandising. However, boys, who also enjoy many of the movies Disney produces, like Frozen, are often turned away from wanting merchandise deemed for girls.  

One of the best things about Childhood Unlimited, is it doesn’t only take into account the struggles of girls but also the struggles that boys will also have to go through. For example, how assigned gender roles have limited girls' in the workplace and how boys could have a negative mindset regarding childcare or just being a caregiver. 

Filled with easy to follow stats and interviews from leading specialists, Childhood Unlimited will leave readers thinking about how they can change their behaviour, break habits, and apply these changes to their everyday lives regarding children. Méndez’s writing style is informal yet engaging. It’s easy to follow and will undoubtedly have you noticing these issues within your daily life. 

This book is highly recommended for those interested in gender politics or those interested in learning more about what they can do to change lifelong habits and help make the world a better and more equal place for girls and boys.

If you’re interested in reading Childhood Unlimited, you can buy it on Amazon, John Murray Press and Blackwells.

*Virginia Méndez is founder of The Feminist Shop and is also a writer here at The C Word Mag - check out her articles, Pink & feminism and Privilege, that scary word.

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Freelance writer with a love of books, particularly those from the 70s and 80s, and in the horror genre, Kennie also has a fondness for classical literature and isn't opposed to digging in with the odd women's fiction. She lives in Shropshire, England with her husband, several furry guinea pups, and Duke the Fish. In order to stop annoying her husband with her constant conversation about the books she reads, she created Step Into The Void, a blog named after the mental state her other half says he steps into whenever she starts talking about the latest Jay Kristoff vampire novel or decides to try to explain the entire plot to Jenn Lyon's four-book epic The Chorus of Dragons or tries to explain why the horror fiction genre is slowing coming back thanks to authors like Grady Hendrix, Augustina Bazterrica, and Catriona Ward.  

Check out her Instagram @booksinthevoid