The conversation around this book began with me asking C how she would live her best life.
You can pretty much imagine a 10 year old's responses to a topic like this:
"Eat loads of junk food and never get told off for it"
"Go to bed when I like"
"Play with my toys rather than do homework"
In "Step into your Power" by Jamia Wilson and Andrea Pippins, the awesome team behind
"Young, Gifted and Black" which was a well-deserved Book of the Week for us a year ago, there's a huge wave of positive thinking and brilliant ideas gathered together in one mightily impressive volume for kids to take inspiration from.
So moving beyond the immediate needs of the here and now, Jamia and Andrea explore 23 simple lessons that can make your life feel a little more satisfying, well rounded and completely awesome.
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| Positive messages and mantras underpin a book chock full of amazing ideas |
It's part self-help book, but also a valuable resource to bring into discussions about all aspects of children's lives, from simple messages of positivity to more structured advice on what to do about issues they might face.
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| Slay your fear, anxiety sufferers |
We both read the book together, and for most of the ideas there is some pretty solid reasoning going on. I still think the book oversimplifies anxiety in a couple of places, and that it's not merely a case of giving yourself a good talking to for most kids who truly do suffer from crippling anxiety. But its heart is definitely in the right place, and I think it's very important for children to be hearing messages of positivity, and some simple steps and lessons on how to deal with issues like anxiety and stress from an early ages (increasingly earlier and earlier each year, it seems - as we've blogged about extensively).
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| Always, always be kind to yourself. No one achieves superhero status overnight. |
The majority of the book is really superb though, and there's no doubt that the huge wave of good intentions and valuable common sense that this book makes really feels like a new and different approach. Fab, and very much needed, this book!
Sum this book up in a sentence: Not preachy, just nicely written insights and ways to become the person you want to be.
"Step into your Power" by Jamia Wilson and Andrea Pippins is out now, published by Wide Eyed Editions (kindly supplied for review).
