A reader-friendly guide to knowing yourself.
Friendly, down-to-earth coaching that addresses teen girls.
Actor Amy Poehler, Walker’s colleague from her days running the talent department at Saturday Night Live, acknowledges in a foreword that developing self-knowledge “is a lifelong process.” In her introduction, Walker emphasizes the importance, in our fast-paced, content-filled world, of remembering the “one thing nobody’s talking about enough: how to think for yourself.” She addresses social, commercial, and media pressures, like “fitting in vs being real.” Prompts ask readers to think about their interests, personal qualities, and achievements that are worth celebrating. The second chapter covers feelings: their range and intensity, expressing and dealing with them, cultivating emotional awareness, and taking mindful action. Other chapters explore purpose, failure, the definition of success, smarter social media use, and engaging in activism. Throughout, the book contains practical, step-by-step advice and helpful tips, like self-affirmation phrases, while direct questions elicit reader engagement. Values like equity, compassion, fairness, and integrity underpin Walker’s approach. Her supportive, uncondescending tone includes mild touches of humor but avoids flippancy, helping the advice land without veering into lecturing or minimizing readers’ feelings. The clean, colorful layout and generously sized typeface support browsing. Occasional soft-edged, color-washed illustrations primarily center a light-skinned girl with dark curly hair; other girls are varied in skin tone and include a wheelchair user and one who wears glasses. The advice may not be novel, but it’s effective and delivered in a conversational first-person voice accompanied by personal anecdotes.
A reader-friendly guide to knowing yourself. (Nonfiction. 12-18)Pub Date: May 12, 2026
ISBN: 9781523525034
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Workman
Review Posted Online: March 23, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2026
Small but mighty necessary reading.
A miniature manifesto for radical queer acceptance that weaves together the personal and political.
Eli, a cis gay white Jewish man, uses his own identities and experiences to frame and acknowledge his perspective. In the prologue, Eli compares the global Jewish community to the global queer community, noting, “We don’t always get it right, but the importance of showing up for other Jews has been carved into the DNA of what it means to be Jewish. It is my dream that queer people develop the same ideology—what I like to call a Global Queer Conscience.” He details his own isolating experiences as a queer adolescent in an Orthodox Jewish community and reflects on how he and so many others would have benefitted from a robust and supportive queer community. The rest of the book outlines 10 principles based on the belief that an expectation of mutual care and concern across various other dimensions of identity can be integrated into queer community values. Eli’s prose is clear, straightforward, and powerful. While he makes some choices that may be divisive—for example, using the initialism LGBTQIAA+ which includes “ally”—he always makes clear those are his personal choices and that the language is ever evolving.
Small but mighty necessary reading. (resources) (Nonfiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 2, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-09368-9
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020
Brief yet inspirational, this story will galvanize youth to use their voices for change.
Testa’s connection to and respect for nature compelled her to begin championing animal causes at the age of 10, and this desire to have an impact later propelled her to dedicate her life to fighting plastic pollution. Starting with the history of plastic and how it’s produced, Testa acknowledges the benefits of plastics for humanity but also the many ways it harms our planet. Instead of relying on recycling—which is both insufficient and ineffective—she urges readers to follow two additional R’s: “refuse” and “raise awareness.” Readers are encouraged to do their part, starting with small things like refusing to use plastic straws and water bottles and eventually working up to using their voices to influence business and policy change. In the process, she highlights other youth advocates working toward the same cause. Short chapters include personal examples, such as observations of plastic pollution in Mauritius, her maternal grandparents’ birthplace. Testa makes her case not only against plastic pollution, but also for the work she’s done, resulting in something of a college-admissions–essay tone. Nevertheless, the first-person accounts paired with science will have an impact on readers. Unfortunately, no sources are cited and the lack of backmatter is a missed opportunity.
Brief yet inspirational, this story will galvanize youth to use their voices for change. (Nonfiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Oct. 13, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-22333-8
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2020
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