inDepth: A Mighty Girl, Part Deux

February 13, 2013 by Dina McQueen

Did you miss Part One? Check it out before you read Part Two!

In about one year, A Mighty Girl went from an idea to what can now be considered the largest online collection of well-vetted books, toys, movies, and clothing for those determined to create an empowered female populace. Though the owners of this start-up did not set out to make Disney (princesses) and Mattel (Barbie) seem ridiculously banal, they are well on their way to eradicating their presence in the minds and hearts of today’s post-Feminine Mystique girls.

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A first visit to the Mighty Girl site, reveals a mind-boggling depth of categorization. Co-founder Carolyn Danckaert assures us that there is a highly-productive team, constantly on the go to build up content, but the well-organized site makes it easy to find what you are looking for.

Though the target audience for the site’s products is children and teens, it offers options for adults as well, especially in its extensive clothing section. Mom and daughter t-shirts, for example, are a hot item, as is young adult fiction. With the popularity of Café Press’s print-on-demand products, A Mighty Girl is able to present a plethora of “girl power” designs that can be printed on anything. Everything on the website is sold through Café Press or Amazon and whenever a purchase is made through A Mighty Girl, the site receives a small commission, which helps keeps this mega-online resource afloat. Three hundred new t-shirts were just added, half through Amazon, and half through Café Press.

“Super hero and literary-themed t-shirts are very popular right now,” says Carolyn. “If an item is strictly for adults, it won’t be on the site. But some of the material is for both youth and adults.”

At first glance, A Mighty Girl website appears self-explanatory. And, it is—once you take the plunge and start investigating. According to Carolyn, the best way to experience the site is to understand that there is a deep categorization system. So, if you have a particular interest, she suggests you start with the relevant category. For example, say you are looking for a biography picture book. First, mouse over “Books,” and then click on “Biography.” Once here, a side bar will highlight various categories, such as: Musicians, Writers, Scientists, etc. Knowing that all books have been reviewed and meet A Mighty Girl’s high standards, it’s easy to do last-minute shopping and trust that you are getting the cream of your desired subject’s crop.

“If you really want to get a sense of the site layout,” Carolyn urges, “mouse over the menu bar, over the buttons for Books, Toys, Movies, and so forth, and you’ll see that they all have a directory that opens with the various sub-categories for each.”

Two more wonderful features that A Mighty Girl offers are its Best of A Mighty Girl special feature and its Character Collections, both linked on the top menu bar. The “Best Of” display a list focused on a theme, like “Top Children’s Books on the Environment,” or “Top Mighty Girl Books on Civil Rights History.” Two of the most popular special features are: 1.) Ultimate Guide to the Independent Princess; and 2.) Top Read-Aloud Books Starring Mighty Girls.

“The Read Aloud feature has been very popular,” says Carolyn. “Our selection includes novels that are not only appropriate for independent reading for children nine to twelve, but also as read-aloud books for younger kids.” Listed is everything from Charlotte’s Web to Savvy (a young adult novel written by Newbery Honoree Ingrid Law, who recently became the inaugural interviewee for a new series on the “A Mighty Girl Creators” blog).

Alternatively, the Character Collection includes everything on the site about a certain character, from books, movies, and even from history–ranging from Merida of the film Brave, to Harriet Tubman. For example, if you click on Madeline, you will discover toys, books, t-shirts, and movies, all focused on Madeline. (There are, in fact, 25 different Madeline items in this section!)

There is so much going on—daily—at A Mighty Girl, you might consider taking your first perusal with a cup of coffee at your side and plenty of time to explore. For this mother of an Ethiopian-born kindergarten girl let loose in a capitalistic Disney Princess/Barbie society, this find is truly heaven sent. Any parental figure hoping to help raise a real mighty girl will be grateful to know about www.amightygirl.com.

For those interested in getting the latest news and thrills from A Mighty Girl, check out their active social networks on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.