Empowers readers to decide who they want to become and gives them tools for figuring that out.
An approachable guide for building social-emotional growth and mindfulness skills in kids and young teens.
Broken into four parts—“Who Am I?”; “What Do I Want?”; “How Can I Serve?”; and “What Am I Grateful For?”—this book offers tools for youth to better understand themselves and to put themselves in charge of what kind of people they want to be. Each section provides an accessible variety of centering activities that require minimal time and supplies, such as breathing exercises, connecting with one’s name, learning about religions, dream journaling, setting intentions, and discovering what brings them joy, to name a few. Each activity comes with guidelines on “time needed” and “location” to perform it along with necessary materials, if any; many are delightfully open-ended: “As long as you want, and over and over again!” Noteworthy in its inclusive approach, this recognizes a variety of experiences and how one’s life is influenced by family, race, religion, nationality, and socio-economic status as well as if the reader is a person with a disability and/or is transgender, homeless, or in foster care. In a section on dealing with disappointment, it acknowledges systemic racism and inequity. Full-page illustrations in cool and calming tones depict peaceful-looking children demonstrating the activities, consciously presenting a racial-, cultural-, and ability-diverse range of youth.
Empowers readers to decide who they want to become and gives them tools for figuring that out. (afterword, resources) (Nonfiction. 9-13)Pub Date: March 2, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7624-7122-5
Page Count: 120
Publisher: Running Press Kids
Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2021
Maybe it’s “awesome” to be average.
Champion table tennis player Syed begins this encouragement book by chronicling his own story of how he grew up believing he was average until he began to master the sport.
The goal of this book is to help kids realize that they needn’t necessarily be born with a certain gift or talent—that maybe success is a combination of hard work, the right mentors, and a strong support system. In the chapter “What’s Holding Me Back?” Syed offers a variety of ways a young person can begin to reflect on who they really are and define what their true passion may be. The following chapters stress the importance of practice, coping with pressure, and honoring mistakes as human rather than failure. Throughout the book, Syed highlights those he terms “Famous Failures,” including Steve Jobs, Jay-Z, and Jennifer Lawrence, while also providing a spotlight for those who mastered their talent by perseverance, such as Serena Williams, the Brontë sisters, and David Beckham. Though this self-help book has good intentions, however, it is a little heavy-handed on the perpetuation of an achievement-oriented life. Perhaps it is also good to acknowledge that not everybody need aspire to someone else’s definition of greatness.
Maybe it’s “awesome” to be average. (Nonfiction. 9-13)Pub Date: July 9, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4926-8753-5
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2019
Occasionally clever—fifth-grade boys will love it.
“There is a lot of nonsense written about the human body,” writes the author, “and this book is no exception.”
Though not quite making good on his promise of “100 percent fact-free chapters,” (he does accurately describe “chondrolaryngoplasty”) Griffiths’ anatomical tour in general steers clear of anything that would be marked as correct on a test. From “Ears can be big or small, depending on their size” to “Capillaries are the larval form of butterflies,” he offers pithy inanities about 68 mostly real body features. Though he closes every entry with “That is all you need to know about…,” he then goes on to regale readers with the news that the epiglottis was named after a Greek philosopher and other “Fun Body Facts.” Similarly, noting that his illustrations “may not be scientifically accurate” (the understatement of the decade), Denton nonetheless provides on nearly every spread profusely labeled, free-association cartoon views of each body part. These are filled out with tiny figures, mechanical apparatus and miscellaneous junk. Though serious young researchers may be disappointed to find the “Private Parts” pages blacked out, a full index follows to provide ready access to any references to poo, pus, farts, drool, “sneeze-powered missiles” and like essentials.
Occasionally clever—fifth-grade boys will love it. (Humor. 10-12)Pub Date: Nov. 13, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-312-36790-9
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: Aug. 14, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2012
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