A groundbreaking text gets updated.
Harris and Emberley’s title has been a controversial staple of the sex-ed genre since its first edition in 1994. This iteration will look familiar in structure and language, and Emberley’s spot illustrations throughout still show various bodies, often naked, sometimes engaging in discreetly covered sexual activity. In this outing, readers will find more information about the internet, an update on legal developments around abortion access, and more inclusive language around gender identity and sexuality. Of especial note are new illustrations highlighting same-sex relationships, both in and out of bed. As has been a feature since the beginning, a bee and a bird pipe up throughout; the bird is interested in everything about sexuality and puberty, and the bee expresses more discomfort and disinterest, mirroring how different readers might respond. While Harris continues to deliver accessible yet clinical messaging around the realities of puberty and the risks and rewards of sexual activity, this book falters significantly in its attempts to include intersex, trans, and nonbinary readers. It switches confusingly between “a pregnant person” and “pregnant women,” acknowledges gender-neutral pronouns but resorts occasionally to “his or her,” and labels bodies as “female” and “male” without referencing the limitations of or any reasoning behind that usage. The illustrations of human beings similarly fail to include any medically gender-transitioned bodies in an otherwise diverse array erroneously titled “All Kinds of Bodies.”
Still a useful resource, but it doesn’t meet the needs of many readers. (index) (Nonfiction. 10-14)Pub Date: May 18, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5362-0720-0
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: March 31, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2021
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Shannon just wants to get through eighth grade in one piece—while feeling like her own worst enemy.
In this third entry in popular author for young people Hale’s graphic memoir series, the young, sensitive overachiever is crushed by expectations: to be cool but loyal to her tightknit and dramatic friend group, a top student but not a nerd, attractive to boys but true to her ideals. As events in Shannon’s life begin to overwhelm her, she works toward finding a way to love and understand herself, follow her passions for theater and writing, and ignore her cruel inner voice. Capturing the visceral embarrassments of middle school in 1987 Salt Lake City, Shannon’s emotions are vivid and often excruciating. In particular, the social norms of a church-oriented family are clearly addressed, and religion is shown as being both a comfort and a struggle for Shannon. While the text is sometimes in danger of spelling things out a little too neatly and obviously, the emotional honesty and sincerity drawn from Hale’s own life win out. Pham’s artwork is vibrant and appealing, with stylistic changes for Shannon’s imaginings and the leeching out of color and use of creative panel structures as her anxiety and depression worsen.
A likable journey that is sensitive to the triumphs and agonies of being a 13-year-old girl. (author's note, gallery) (Graphic memoir. 10-14)Pub Date: Aug. 31, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-250-31755-1
Page Count: 320
Publisher: First Second
Review Posted Online: June 11, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2021
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Soccer star and activist Wambach adapts Wolfpack (2019), her New York Times bestseller for adults, for a middle-grade audience.
“YOU. ARE. THE. WOLVES.” That rallying cry, each word proudly occupying its own line on the page, neatly sums up the fierce determination Wambach demands of her audience. The original Wolfpack was an adaptation of the viral 2018 commencement speech she gave at Barnard College; in her own words, it was “a directive to unleash [the graduates’] individuality, unite the collective, and change the world.” This new adaption takes the themes of the original and recasts them in kid-friendly terms, the call to action feeling more relevant now than ever. With the exception of the introduction and closing remarks, each short chapter presents a new leadership philosophy, dishing out such timeless advice as “Be grateful and ambitious”; “Make failure your fuel”; “Champion each other”; and “Find your pack.” Chapters utilize “rules” as a framing device. The first page of each presents a generalized “old” and “new” rule pertaining to that chapter’s guiding principle, and each chapter closes with a “Call to the Wolfpack” that sums up those principles in more specific terms. Some parts of the book come across as somewhat quixotic or buzzword-heavy, but Wambach deftly mitigates much of the preachiness with a bluff, congenial tone and refreshing dashes of self-deprecating humor. Personal anecdotes help ground each of the philosophies in applicability, and myriad heavy issues are respectfully, yet simply broached.
A powerful resource for young people itching for change. (Nonfiction. 10-14)Pub Date: Oct. 6, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-250-76686-1
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 1, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2020
Categories: CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES
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