Rose and the Awakening of the Goddess
Coreen Ipsen
Inner Sanctum Healing (2021)
ISBN: 978-0-6488555-2-1
Reviewed by Rachel Dehning for Reader Views (12/21)
I can honestly say that I’ve never read a book quite like “Rose and the Awakening of the Goddess.” Author Coreen Ipsen labels the book as “a story about starting menstruation;” this is what it talks about in story form. Rose, a young girl of untold age, is blessed with a loving mother and aunties who don’t shy from uncomfortable life topics. Rose, her mother, brother, and aunties regularly celebrate during the new moon; each celebration is slightly different, but they all revolve around being in tune with your body and not allowing negativity to take over.
One day, Rose’s mother tells her that the next get-together will focus on a surprise that will prepare Rose for when her Goddess awakens. Rose learns about her “moon time,” or the beginning of her monthly cycle, from her mother and aunties. The women in her life speak of this life event as uplifting and empowering; in the foreword, Ipsen writes many women don’t know enough about this topic to give young girls the chance to feel empowered, so they end up feeling scared and unsure. As young girls should be, Rose is taken shopping for supplies, educated on their uses and how the mind and body work together – both needing adequate attention.
The way the characters speak to each other is calming and makes a topic uncomfortable to most, seen in a different light as more than typical, but a stage of life to be celebrated and revered. The central theme of the story centers around spirituality with Mother Earth, reusable items versus disposable, and there being a Goddess inside each female. Celebrating the female body should never be discouraged, but recognized as a gift with responsibility attached. I appreciated the nod to mental health by teaching ways of understanding and releasing anger, stress, and negative emotions through inward searching or utilizing various coping skills, such as writing in a journal.
I have not read this book to my daughter yet; she is still a few years off, and I am not at a point where I feel comfortable discussing this topic with her yet. I believe that “Rose” does an excellent job of providing an adequate explanation and fitting reassurance to readers while providing an entertaining story for young girls. The illustrations add depth and realism to the story.
As previously mentioned, I have not read a story quite like “Rose and the Awakening of the Goddess,” but I welcome the change and new ways of viewing this topic that I have intimate knowledge and experience with.
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