Though there’s little new in this middle-grade self-help book, this strategic, confidence-building read is just enough to...
Svoboda’s inspirational offering begins with the story of a high school senior who bravely took the wheel of a school bus after the bus driver had a heart attack while driving. The author then asks her young readers to imagine what they would have done in that situation.
In an easy-to-read narrative, readers learn the myths of heroism and how it is truly the everyday acts of heroism that don’t make the news that matter. This book is for those that aspire to help the world, and it acts as a guide, providing chapters such as “Recognize Your Hero’s Journey,” which presents a condensed version of Joseph Campbell’s take on a hero’s evolution. Further chapters stress the importance of role models, giving examples of those that have already answered the call, like Phillip Zimbardo, who started the Heroic Imagination Project, which teaches young people to actively and confidently “do the right thing” when others are in need. The most inspiring chapter, “Transform Pain into Heroic Purpose,” coaches young people facing difficulty to transform their struggles into purpose by sharing their experiences in ways that can help others who are going through similar challenges.
Though there’s little new in this middle-grade self-help book, this strategic, confidence-building read is just enough to energize a young person who still feels hope to change the world one day at a time. (Nonfiction. 10-14)Pub Date: Aug. 6, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-942186-25-0
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Zest Books
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
Readers will agree when, in the triumphant final poem, an assured Addie proclaims: “I am a girl who knows enough / to know...
In this companion novel, Howe explores the interior life of the most outspoken member of the “Gang of Five” from The Misfits and Totally Joe (2001, 2005).
Told entirely in verse, the story follows 13-year-old Addie’s struggles to define herself according to her own terms. Through her poems, Addie reflects on her life and life in general: her first boyfriend, what it means to be accepted and her endeavors to promote equality. Addie is at her most fragile when she examines her relationship with her boyfriend and the cruel behavior of her former best friend. Her forthright observations address serious topics with a maturity beyond her age. She contemplates the tragedy of teen suicide in “What If” and decries the practice of forced marriages in “What We Don’t Know,” stating “…And their mothers / have no power to change how it goes. They too / have been beaten and raped, sold and traded like / disposable goods, owned by men, while the only thing / they own is their misery…” Addie’s voice gains confidence when she takes on the role of an advocate, as when she reveals her reasons for forming the GSA (Gay Straight Alliance) at school in “No One is Free When Others Are Oppressed (A Button on My Backpack).” Bolstered by the sage advice of her grandmother, Addie charts a steady course through her turbulent seventh-grade year.
Readers will agree when, in the triumphant final poem, an assured Addie proclaims: “I am a girl who knows enough / to know this life is mine.” (author's note) (Verse novel. 11-14)Pub Date: July 26, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-4169-1384-9
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2011
A lively biography and an interesting lens through which to see a venerated author.
A well-researched biography explores how Charles Dickens used his stories to effect social change for London’s most destitute children.
Warren explores how Dickens’ personal experience with poverty and his astute observations of the poor informed his writing. He then used his stories to advocate for improvements in the lives of the most wretched of London’s street and institutionalized children. Dickens’ determination to overcome his family difficulties through perseverance and talent are on display. The author further develops the theme of artist as reformer/activist by including the stories of composer George Frederic Handel and painter William Hogarth and their support for the Foundling Hospital, a charity that years later would benefit from Dickens’ attention. Warren’s account is full of detail regarding the desperate plight of London’s children during the 19th century and makes clear how little help was available. She uses examples from Dickens’ work and the awareness created by his compelling storytelling as factors that opened the eyes of many and resulted in societal changes. In addition, she connects this history to current problems in many places in the world. “What Charles Dickens wrote 170 years ago remains true today: life is difficult for the poor—and is most difficult of all for poor children.”
A lively biography and an interesting lens through which to see a venerated author. (source notes, bibliography, author's note, index) (Nonfiction 10-14)Pub Date: Nov. 29, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-39574-6
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
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