A guide to shattering the learned behavior of women everywhere outlines what keeps women from asserting themselves, describes the submissive body language that signals passivity, and shares effective strategies for women to pursue their desires.

"The first biography of Helen Gurley Brown, author of the 1962 international bestseller Sex and the Single Girl and 32-year editor of Cosmopolitan magazine. Scanlon had unprecedented access to Brown's papers, and she presents Brown in the context of the feminist movement, highlighting her role as an advocate of professional accomplishment and sexual freedom for women"--Provided by publisher.

Tells you how to break the rules & get what you want from your job, your family, & your relationship. Explores what goes into creating the "good girl" mentality that convinces women to settle for leftovers instead of reaching for the gold. Shows that not only are bad girls more confident & assertive than their good sisters, but that they are happier & more successful. They need to believe in their abilities, trust their intelligence & competence, & embrace risk. Ehrhardt outlines the mental traps & submissive body language that keep women from asserting themselves, & shares clear, effective strategies for greater happiness.

"The possibility of being a victim of a crime is ever present on my mind; thinking about it as natural as breathing."—40-year-old woman This is a compelling analysis of how women in the United States perceive the threat of crime in their everyday lives and how that perception controls their behavior. Esther Madriz draws on focus groups and in-depth interviews to show the damage that fear can wreak on women of different ages and socioeconomic backgrounds. Although anxiety about crime affects virtually every woman, Madriz shows that race and class position play a role in a woman's sense of vulnerability. Fear of crime has resulted in public demand for stronger and more repressive policies throughout the country. As funds for social programs are cut, Madriz points out, those for more prisons and police are on the increase. She also illustrates how media images of victims—"good" victims aren't culpable, "bad" victims invite trouble—and a tough political stance toward criminals are linked to a general climate of economic uncertainty and conservatism. Madriz argues that fear itself is a strong element in keeping women in subservient and self-limiting social positions. "Policing" themselves, they construct a restricted world that leads to positions of even greater subordination: Being a woman means being vulnerable. Considering the enormous attention given to crime today, including victims' rights and use of public funds, Madriz's informative study is especially timely.

The biography of the revolutionary magazine editor who created the “Cosmo Girl” before Sex and the City’s Carrie Bradshaw was even born As the author of the iconic Sex and the Single Girl (1962) and the editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan magazine for over three decades, Helen Gurley Brown (1922–2012) changed how women thought about sex, money, and their bodies in a way that resonates in our culture today. In Jennifer Scanlon's widely acclaimed biography, the award-winning scholar reveals Brown’s incredible life story from her escape from her humble beginnings in the Ozarks to her eyebrow-raising exploits as a young woman in New York City, and her late-blooming career as the world's first "lipstick feminist." A mesmerizing tribute to a legend, Bad Girls Go Everywhere will appeal to everyone from Sex and the City and Mad Men fans to students of women's history and media studies.

The 1962 blockbuster that took on “one of the most absurd (if universal) myths of our time: that every girl must be married” (The New York Times). Helen Gurley Brown, the iconic editor in chief of Cosmopolitan for thirty-two years, is considered one of the most influential figures of Second Wave feminism. Her first book sold millions of copies, became a cultural phenomenon, and ushered in a whole new way of thinking about work, men, and life. Feisty, fun, and totally frank, Sex and the Single Girl offers advice to unmarried women that is as relevant today as it was when it burst onto the scene in the 1960s. This spirited manifesto puts women—and what they want—first. It captures the exuberance, optimism, and independence that have influenced the lives of so many contemporary American women.