by Jenn McAllister ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 25, 2015
A vanity project that's for fans only.
A popular YouTuber releases her memoir.
Jenn McAllister, better known as Jennxpenn, details her ascent to Internet stardom and her personal struggles with bullying and anxiety. The book flips between prose chapters and lists, such as "Top 10 Things Middle Schoolers Worry About That They Shouldn't" and "Top 10 Best Pieces of Advice I've Ever Received." Unfortunately neither really pops. The lists are serviceable distractions filled with boilerplate platitudes (“Know It’s Not About You”; “Nobody’s in Charge of Your Happiness Except You”). McAllister's recounting of her own life starts interestingly enough (although her "bullying" is pretty tame, mostly name-calling that most children endure) but quickly loses narrative urgency or comedic charm. The book is filled with pictures as well, but there aren't any captions, so those who aren't familiar with YouTube culture won't know whom these people are or what the point of the picture's placement is. This lack of context feeds into the book's largest problem: anyone not familiar with Jennxpenn and her cohorts is left completely behind. The author describes her burgeoning channel competently enough early on, but once she makes it big, the narrative devolves into a listing of accomplishments and experiences that don't lead into one another in any way or provide much meaning to those curious about YouTubers but not particularly familiar with them.
A vanity project that's for fans only. (Memoir. 13-17)Pub Date: Aug. 25, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-545-86112-0
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Sept. 20, 2015
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by Ann Bausum ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 5, 2015
Enlightening, inspiring, and moving.
Pennies, glass bottles, a parking meter, and a kick line: how a police raid became a community’s symbol of freedom.
June 28, 1969: the night the gay bar Stonewall was raided by the police for the second time in a week to stop a blackmail operation. What began as a supposedly routine police raid ended with over 2,000 angry, fed-up protesters fighting against the police in New York’s West Village. Bausum eloquently and thoughtfully recounts it all, from the violent arrest of a young lesbian by the police to an angry, mocking, Broadway-style kick line of young men protesting against New York’s Tactical Control Force. Bausum not only recounts the action of the evening in clear, blow-by-blow journalistic prose, she also is careful to point out assumptions and misunderstandings that might also have occurred during the hot summer night. Her narrative feels fueled by rage and empowerment and the urge to tell the truth. She doesn’t bat an eye when recounting the ways that the LGBT fought to find freedom, love, and the physical manifestations of those feelings, whether at the Stonewall Inn or inside the back of a meat truck parked along the Hudson River. Readers coming of age at a time when state after state is beginning to celebrate gay marriage will be astonished to return to a time when it was a crime for a man to wear a dress.
Enlightening, inspiring, and moving. (Nonfiction. 13-16)Pub Date: May 5, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-670-01679-2
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: March 2, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2015
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by Kidada Jones ; illustrated by Koa Jones & Kidada Jones ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 2, 2017
Despite the subtitle, this book’s affirming messages can serve diverse genders.
In the opening of this self-esteem builder, Kidada Jones tells readers that the education system failed her; she matriculated through 11 schools and was kicked out of eight.
This is the book she didn’t have growing up. It starts with the premise that a girl is a mini-universe, referencing astrophysics that teaches how atoms and molecules in our bodies contain the same materials that exist in the visible universe. Each chapter ends with a “So you’re telling me this because…?” section, offering an alternative teaching model that explains the benefit of each lesson. Throughout the book, readers are advised to create a “soul-soothing tool kit,” a shoe box to be filled with affordable, creative supplies that are used for ongoing activities related to the theme of each chapter. Lessons include mindfulness exercises, reflective writing activities, yoga poses, and affirmations, along with several activities that help inspire mental and emotional well-being. Jones offers healthy-eating tips that include simple and nutritious recipes. This book has a strong New Age feel, with its allusions to the power of energy, vibes, and dreamcatchers, but it also gets practical, addressing bullying, crushes, and learning how to be a good friend. The coolest thing about this book is that none of the activities involve using social media, leaving readers to truly tap into the creative, undistracted self.
Despite the subtitle, this book’s affirming messages can serve diverse genders. (Nonfiction. 13-17)Pub Date: Oct. 2, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-60868-458-8
Page Count: 168
Publisher: New World Library
Review Posted Online: Aug. 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2017
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