A strong introduction for parents concerned about their children’s well-being in the modern age.
Idoko offers a path forward for parents who fear the toll that modern childhood takes.
The author is a neurologist and children’s rights attorney who understands the importance of identifying the factors that affect children struggling to thrive in our modern world. She tackles systemic issues head-on and identifies the five main systems that put children at risk. “Big Food” prioritizes shelf-stability and immediate appeal over health. “Big Pharma” has turned tools for short-term stabilization into “instruments of long-term management.” “Big Medicine” often undermines parents’ own instincts. “Big Government” shoves additives into school lunches, and “Big Media” prizes profits over what is best for the audience. The result of these influences, per Idoko, is a generation of children at risk of becoming disconnected from the innate biological systems intended to regulate and promote their development; their bodies work to compensate for as long as they can, then collapse begins. Such collapse takes the forms of language and social regression, sleep changes, disruptive behavior, withdrawal, and an ever-increasing dependence on the very systems that are causing harm. Many of the interventions the author proposes involve dietary shifts and careful record-keeping as a means to help parents advocate for themselves, even as the systems in place dismiss their concerns (Idoko argues that the path toward a solution relies on parents trusting their instincts). The author’s text is direct and free of jargon as she describes the experiences of parents and offers immediately actionable steps. Idoko effectively articulates the challenge of bridging the gap between parents’ experiences and the scientific establishment: “What can’t be monetized gets underfunded. What’s underfunded looks unproven. What looks unproven gets ignored.” While the nuances of the author’s argument occasionally risk getting lost amid a sea of memorable one-liners (“when rhythm breaks, biology breaks”; “compliance isn’t development”), ultimately, her message is clear: In an age of “Big” systems, parents must trust both the science and themselves.
A strong introduction for parents concerned about their children’s well-being in the modern age.Pub Date: April 18, 2026
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: March 11, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
The heartbreaking story of an emotionally battered child delivered with captivating candor and grace.
The former iCarly star reflects on her difficult childhood.
In her debut memoir, titled after her 2020 one-woman show, singer and actor McCurdy (b. 1992) reveals the raw details of what she describes as years of emotional abuse at the hands of her demanding, emotionally unstable stage mom, Debra. Born in Los Angeles, the author, along with three older brothers, grew up in a home controlled by her mother. When McCurdy was 3, her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Though she initially survived, the disease’s recurrence would ultimately take her life when the author was 21. McCurdy candidly reconstructs those in-between years, showing how “my mom emotionally, mentally, and physically abused me in ways that will forever impact me.” Insistent on molding her only daughter into “Mommy’s little actress,” Debra shuffled her to auditions beginning at age 6. As she matured and starting booking acting gigs, McCurdy remained “desperate to impress Mom,” while Debra became increasingly obsessive about her daughter’s physical appearance. She tinted her daughter’s eyelashes, whitened her teeth, enforced a tightly monitored regimen of “calorie restriction,” and performed regular genital exams on her as a teenager. Eventually, the author grew understandably resentful and tried to distance herself from her mother. As a young celebrity, however, McCurdy became vulnerable to eating disorders, alcohol addiction, self-loathing, and unstable relationships. Throughout the book, she honestly portrays Debra’s cruel perfectionist personality and abusive behavior patterns, showing a woman who could get enraged by everything from crooked eyeliner to spilled milk. At the same time, McCurdy exhibits compassion for her deeply flawed mother. Late in the book, she shares a crushing secret her father revealed to her as an adult. While McCurdy didn’t emerge from her childhood unscathed, she’s managed to spin her harrowing experience into a sold-out stage act and achieve a form of catharsis that puts her mind, body, and acting career at peace.
The heartbreaking story of an emotionally battered child delivered with captivating candor and grace.Pub Date: Aug. 9, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-982185-82-4
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
The lessons to draw are obvious: Smoke more dope, eat less meat. Like-minded readers will dig it.
The chef, rapper, and TV host serves up a blustery memoir with lashings of self-help.
“I’ve always had a sick confidence,” writes Bronson, ne Ariyan Arslani. The confidence, he adds, comes from numerous sources: being a New Yorker, and more specifically a New Yorker from Queens; being “short and fucking husky” and still game for a standoff on the basketball court; having strength, stamina, and seemingly no fear. All these things serve him well in the rough-and-tumble youth he describes, all stickball and steroids. Yet another confidence-builder: In the big city, you’ve got to sink or swim. “No one is just accepted—you have to fucking show that you’re able to roll,” he writes. In a narrative steeped in language that would make Lenny Bruce blush, Bronson recounts his sentimental education, schooled by immigrant Italian and Albanian family members and the mean streets, building habits good and bad. The virtue of those habits will depend on your take on modern mores. Bronson writes, for example, of “getting my dick pierced” down in the West Village, then grabbing a pizza and smoking weed. “I always smoke weed freely, always have and always will,” he writes. “I’ll just light a blunt anywhere.” Though he’s gone through the classic experiences of the latter-day stoner, flunking out and getting arrested numerous times, Bronson is a hard charger who’s not afraid to face nearly any challenge—especially, given his physique and genes, the necessity of losing weight: “If you’re husky, you’re always dieting in your mind,” he writes. Though vulgar and boastful, Bronson serves up a model that has plenty of good points, including his growing interest in nature, creativity, and the desire to “leave a legacy for everybody.”
The lessons to draw are obvious: Smoke more dope, eat less meat. Like-minded readers will dig it.Pub Date: April 20, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-4197-4478-5
Page Count: 184
Publisher: Abrams
Review Posted Online: May 5, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2021
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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