Daring Girls - listen up! With the release of the highly anticipated and successful book The Daring Book for Girls, we at BB HQ just had to find out more! That's why this month along with our cool review in 2 Cents, we had a chat with Harper Collins publishing Director, Shona Martyn, to get the inside spiel into the world of Daring Girls.

Shona, what do you like most about 'The Daring Book for Girls'?

I love the orange jacket with the sparkly type - we were determined not to have a girly pink as this is for DARING girls. But most of all I love the content. I wish this book was around when I was growing up! There are things every girl should know (who was Bloody Mary? How do you treat a snake bite? How does a car engine work?) . Then there's stuff that is just plain fun - like how to put up your hair with a pencil, whistle with two fingers, tie a sari or tie-dye a T-shirt.

Having a daring daughter yourself, is this manual-style book something you deem necessary to her?

My daughter Evangeline is 13 and when the Dangerous Book For Boys came out a few years ago she was one of many girls who asked why there wasn't one for them. The manual style of the book is great because you can dip in and out of it. The first thing Evangeline and her friends turned to was "how to build a campfire". Daring Girls is the perfect book to take on holiday to the beach (if it rains, there is plenty of indoor fun - Ghost stories! )

The book is based on redirecting the girls of today away from the likes of the internet and video games etc, to get back to tradition and the outdoors. Why do you think this is important? Do you believe there needs to be a cause for social change in society today? Why?

There is nothing wrong with simultaneously checking out the internet, texting and watching a dvd - as long as it is not the only thing you do. As a parent as well as a publisher, I think it would be a pity if today's girls grew up primarily indoors looking at electronic screens or shopping at Westfield! After all, we live in a country with great weather! It's also a pity that many girls aren't learning to knit or make biscuits or press flowers - sometimes because Mums like me are too busy to teach them or never learned anyway! Daring Girls lets girls take things into their own hands. If they do, they will have more fun and be much more rounded human beings.

What else do you believe contributed to the creation of Andrea Buchanan and Miriam Peskowitz's book The Daring Book for Girls.

Andrea and Miriam were inspired by the UK brothers who wrote Dangerous Book For Boys. But they clearly believed that modern girls wanted daring activities as much as their brothers do. It would have been a big pity if their book consisted only of safe girly activities.

There are some very adventurous activities in the book, including BB favourites - learning to surf and holding successful sleep outs, what are your favourites?

I was a bit of a sickly indoor child myself and I really regret that I didn't learn a lot of adventurous activities when I was younger and braver. The things I would have most liked to learn are surfing, paddling a canoe and riding a skateboard. However, realistically I am more likely to actually attempt to make the Lemon-Powered Clock!

At BB we feel there is something new to be learnt for a girl of any age; from flying a kite to learning about finance and business. Do you think it is the time for the female to shine?

I think lots of women are shining already and in lots of spheres - look at Helen Clark, the extremely well-read New Zealand Prime Minister, who was able to attempt resuscitation of her walking tour guide on an isolated mountainside! But many girls and women still sell themselves short when it gets to the workplace. The sections in the book on negotiating a salary (sadly men are better at this than women!), public speaking and the stock market are must reads, especially for teens.

The authors in their introduction commented that the book is filled with "Possibilities and ideas for filling a day with adventure, imagination and fun. The world is bigger than you can imagine, and it's yours for the exploring - if you dare." Do you think that this is a message lost in the mindset of many young girls today? why?

I do think that our lives are too crowded today - homework, afterschool activities and of course all the electronic temptations at our fingertips mean that our time is much more scheduled than it was when I was growing up. That goes for adults as well as kids. Most Saturdays in my childhood, I just pottered round home and then maybe went shopping or to see a friend. In contrast, my daughter's average Saturday makes you tired before you begin….netball, horse riding, homework, birthday parties, double bass practice, not to mention shopping and keeping up with friends. That's why it can be harder to just use your imagination or fill a day with adventure. And all the more reason to try and do this in the holidays. I hope some girls will drag out Daring Girls when their friends come over and give some of the activities a go.

The book is packed with activities for the bush, beach, the backyard and the bedroom, basically a list of the Aussie girls sanctuaries. What are your thoughts on its strong Australian flavour?

The first edition of this book came out in the United States last year and although HarperCollins sold some copies here it was MUCH too American. We decided to do our own Australian edition and pulled out about 40% of the material and deliberately replaced it with Australian stuff. It means the book really works here. And besides, why do we want to read about American heroines when we have our own?

What advice to you give to girls and their parents who are about to read the Daring Book for Girls?

Girls: Have fun and give it a go; Parents: let the girls be brave! They can build campfires without you hovering or taking over!

What are some of the important lessons that you hope your daughter can take away from reading the Daring Book for Girls?

I think we should be proud of the things that women have achieved. And we should definitely be more daring! Perhaps I should get back to horse riding again, like my daughter suggests, instead of worrying that I might fall off!