Betty Cornell's Teen-Age Popularity Guide

On Monday this blog featured Popular: Vintage Wisdom for a Modern Geek, a memoir penned by Maya Van Wagenen about her year following the beauty and lifestyle advice written about in Betty Cornell's Teen-Age Popularity Guide.  This book changed Maya's life, helping her to become healthier, more confident, and, yes, popular.

The Miss Cornell's Guide, originally published in the early 1950s, has been re-issued in 2014 with a special forward by Maya. Betty Cornell's Teen-Age Popularity Guide has chapters on everything from beauty (hair, skin, figure, makeup), wardrobe, health (diet and exercise), attitude and personality, dating, and getting a first job (and how to keep it). Some of the advice is pretty dated. Like, would you really wear a girdle? Do you even know what a girdle is? And, lets face it: The only girl who really brushes her hair 100 strokes every night is Marcia Brady. But other tips, like taking care of your health and mastering the art of writing thank you notes (not texts), is timeless. It's easy to see how this book could've helped a girl like Maya. Or any girl, for that matter--whether she was a teen in 1951 or a teen today.

Did you enjoy Maya's book and now want to see what all the fuss over Betty Cornell's guide is about? Now's your chance to see for yourself...and see if any of Betty's advice works for you too! --AJB

Popular: Vintage Wisdom for a Modern Geek

Can a "How To Be Popular" guide written in the 1950s help an awkward teen from 2012 to build confidence and fit in?

Surprisingly, the answer is "yes"!

When it came to popularity, Maya Van Wagenen often described herself as being "pretty much the lowest level of people at school who aren't paid to be here". Then she discovered Betty Cornell's Teenage Popularity Guide, published in 1951. Her dad had bought it as a joke, but when it came into Maya's hands, she saw it as something as more than just a novelty prop. Before beginning 8th grade, Maya decided to try something: She'd follow the advice in the book and see where it took her, applying Betty Cornell's advice to her life in the 21st century. The results were amazing. Not only did Maya build her own confidence, but she actually gained a certain level of popularity.

Maya's own memoir, Popular: Vintage Wisdom for a Modern Geek, is funny, heartwarming, and, at times, positively cringe-worthy. And it proves that, while trends come and go, some advice is timeless! A definite must-read!

p.s. Want to check out Betty Cornell's book for yourself? We own that too! --AJB