Chuck Norris wishes he was Zoey Redbird

Do you know what I think is cool? Super-chicks. You know, those girls that have it all: looks, brains, sass, kindness, and the ability to kick a boy in the face. I love how Buffy Summers could quip and pun as she dusted vamps without scuffing her "stylish, yet affordable, boots". I reveled in how Veroinca Mars, could out-smart anyone with her "pixie-spy magic" to solve a case. And of course I love Batgirl. Librarian by day, superhero by night? What's not to love?


Now, thanks to the collective talent of P.C. and Kristen Cast, I have a new super-chick to love. Zoey Redbird is the heroine of the House of Night novels. In the books she's a fledgling (a kid that has been Marked but must complete the Change to become a Vampire) who has been gifted by her goddess with special abilities. (OK. So it's another vampire novel. I promise the next post will be fangs free. But this post isn't really about vampires. It's about female empowerment. Keep reading.)

I think Zoey may be one of my favorite YA heroines of all time. On the surface, I like how relateable she is. She loves non-diet brown pop with something that might border on obsession. She refuses to have a potty mouth, even though some of her friends tease her about it. She likes geeking out with her friends. She loves greasy burgers, sugary cereals, and Lord of the Rings. And she has a Star Trek sweatshirt.

What I love most about Zoey, however, is the stuff that goes on beyond the surface. Zoey is, like all of us, insecure at times. She struggles with her choices, and doesn't always make the right ones. In fact, she's made some really huge, terrible, ugly mistakes. And those mistakes have consequences, which she is mature enough to accept. Zoey recognizes her strength without being smug or conceited. She realizes that her skills and responsibilities outweighs those of her friends, yet she still sees them as equals. Zoey Redbird exudes awareness, beauty, confidence, courage, fortitude, kindness, and tenacity. And she can seriously kick butt.

I think it's important that we have women like Zoey to look up to. Our current pop culture climate has most female characters spending the majority of time salivating over Milano Blahniks and scheming on how to stab their best friend in the back so that they can hook-up with their Ken doll wannabe boyfriend. Is that seriously the kind of person you want to be? Or do you want to be strong, smart, sensitive and sassy? For me the choice is simple. I choose the super-chicks.