An upbeat volume that encourages young people to reach for the stars.
Avant-garde, who in 2021 became the first African American winner of the Scripps National Spelling Bee, offers guidance to readers eager to follow their own dreams.
Though the author’s many achievements—among them two basketball-related Guinness World Records and being named SportsKid 2021 of the year by Sports Illustrated Kids—may look effortless, she stresses that it’s been hard work. In this chatty book, the 16-year-old shares her recipe for success. “Being on a team is part of what makes me a champion,” she says. As a home-schooled student, she’s almost always around her family, and she watches out for her younger brothers. Avant-garde believes that a willingness to embrace being different (her curiosity and love of doing math in her head set her apart) is another important factor. She encourages readers to learn as much as they can about the things they care about and to choose, and understand, their opponents, though she adds that an opponent isn’t necessarily a person (for her, it’s the dictionary). Working hard is a major part of her equation, as is asking for help. Avant-garde reminds readers that they can learn just as much from setbacks as from triumphs and advises them to find ways to recharge. Finally, she notes, persistence is crucial. Avant-garde’s advice is solid, and her peppy, casual tone will speak to readers.
An upbeat volume that encourages young people to reach for the stars. (Memoir/self-help. 8-12)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9780593568996
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Feb. 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
With young readers diagnosed with anxiety in ever increasing numbers, this book offers a necessary mirror to many.
Young Raina is 9 when she throws up for the first time that she remembers, due to a stomach bug. Even a year later, when she is in fifth grade, she fears getting sick.
Raina begins having regular stomachaches that keep her home from school. She worries about sharing food with her friends and eating certain kinds of foods, afraid of getting sick or food poisoning. Raina’s mother enrolls her in therapy. At first Raina isn’t sure about seeing a therapist, but over time she develops healthy coping mechanisms to deal with her stress and anxiety. Her therapist helps her learn to ground herself and relax, and in turn she teaches her classmates for a school project. Amping up the green, wavy lines to evoke Raina’s nausea, Telgemeier brilliantly produces extremely accurate visual representations of stress and anxiety. Thought bubbles surround Raina in some panels, crowding her with anxious “what if”s, while in others her negative self-talk appears to be literally crushing her. Even as she copes with anxiety disorder and what is eventually diagnosed as mild irritable bowel syndrome, she experiences the typical stresses of school life, going from cheer to panic in the blink of an eye. Raina is white, and her classmates are diverse; one best friend is Korean American.
With young readers diagnosed with anxiety in ever increasing numbers, this book offers a necessary mirror to many. (Graphic memoir. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 17, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-545-85251-7
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Graphix/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 11, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2019
This introduction to puberty may be particularly helpful for girls looking ahead to that stage.
A growing-up guide for preteen girls.
This puberty-navigation guide covers girls’ bodily changes, body care, health, relationships with family and friends, staying safe, and handling stress. In many cases the author, a registered nurse, has covered the same material as she did in various editions of this title as well as The Boy’s Body Book. This girls’ book skips the topics of sleep and performance-enhancement drugs in favor of a section on eating disorders. As in the boys’ book, controversial subjects are addressed generally and conservatively if at all. She includes a rough diagram of female reproductive organs and tells her young readers about menstruation and visiting a gynecologist but not how babies are made. She talks about having boys as friends, saying “Don’t put pressure on yourself to call any of your close friendships ‘dating.’ ” The strength of this title is its emphasis on good grooming, healthy living habits, and positive relationships. Added for this fourth edition is new material on interacting with adults, personal empowerment, body language, reputations, and “learning disabilities,” helpful information for the growing segment of the preteen population identified with cognitive and social learning differences. Tallardy’s cartoon illustrations show girls and adults of varying ethnicities and provide a cheerful accompaniment.
This introduction to puberty may be particularly helpful for girls looking ahead to that stage. (resources, index) (Nonfiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Nov. 14, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-60433-714-3
Page Count: 148
Publisher: Cider Mill Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 17, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
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