It's Your World: Get Informed, Get Inspired & Get Going!
by Chelsea Clinton (Author)
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Kirkus
From an activist who sent a protest letter to President Ronald Reagan when she was 5, a tally of urgent worldwide concerns and issues, with pointed calls to get the lead out.
Clinton traces her lifelong involvement in social and environmental causes to family and to the classic 50 Simple Things You Can Do to Save the Earth (1989). She intersperses carefully researched factual surveys and admiring profiles of other (mostly) young activists with her own experiences and opinions. Though these personal notes are fairly engaging, overall the nine topical chapters make dry reading: “Poverty and stunting are deeply intertwined. Parents living in extreme poverty are more likely to have children who suffer from stunting. Children who are stunted generally grow up less physically and mentally strong…,” etc. She also sidesteps complexity by, for instance, not mentioning complaints about Heifer International’s deceptive donation model or ever, despite discussion of human trafficking, using the words “rape” or (except in the section on HIV/AIDS) “sex.” Nor does she make it easy for young people patient enough to stay the course to strike out on their own. Though the many contact URLs that are buried in the narrative are at least repeated at the ends of their respective chapters, they come in bulleted lists of suggestions that tend toward either repetitive boilerplate (“Talk to your family and at least three friends…”) or generalities like “Stay away from secondhand smoke.” Still, everything here is, or had better be, of compelling concern to young people, and her concluding “It’s better to get caught trying” is inarguable if not exactly electric.
Another voice in the chorus of calls to action—earnest and on target but more likely to be bought than read. (map, charts, infographics, index) (Nonfiction. 10-13)Publishers Weekly
This earnest compendium by the former (and perhaps future) presidential First Daughter outlines ways that teens and tweens can harness their power for good. Clinton begins each of the book's four sections (It's Your Economy, It's Your Right, It's Your Body, It's Your Environment) with an overview of problems--homelessness, gender discrimination, disease, pollution--and clearly explains how perniciously interconnected so many of them are: poverty results in hunger, which affects school performance, which undermines employability. She highlights young people who have already done extraordinary things to improve their communities, then enumerates several opportunities available to readers: fundraising to build wells, patronizing restaurants that participate in food giveaways, donating hair to make wigs for kids with cancer. She also shares some tidbits of personal history--her aversion to corporal punishment stems from being paddled in elementary school after a classmate tricked her into saying a bad word to a beloved teacher. Clinton clearly paid attention to her parents' discussions at the dinner table, and she capably shares the lessons they imparted about the future impact of what we do in the present. Ages 10-up. (Sept.)
Copyright 2015 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.School Library Journal
Gr 5-8--This basic primer on social issues covers education; poverty, both in the United States and globally; women's rights; public health; and the environment. Taking an upbeat, positive approach, former First Daughter Clinton stresses the importance of being proactive and involved when it comes to current events. She includes many examples of children and teens who have made a difference, and each chapter ends with a list of concrete actions readers can take to "Get Going!" Relevant topics (the antivaccination movement, global warming, the wage gap) are broken down in accessible, if slightly dry, language; while comprehensible, the book occasionally veers into PSA territory. Though Clinton draws upon her own personal experiences in an attempt to make the text more relatable (her tone is that of a gentle and encouraging older sister), references to her more privileged background often feel slightly tone-deaf (for instance, in a section discussing how medical problems such as heart disease disproportionately affect people of color from low socioeconomic backgrounds, the author mentions the lifestyle changes that her father, former president Bill Clinton, made after undergoing bypass surgery). While the cheery yellow cover and chapter headings presented in bubble lettering suggest a younger audience, this is a fairly dense tome (the text is broken up by the occasional chart or serviceable black-and-white photograph) that may prove daunting for those seeking pleasure reading. However, the information is sound, useful, and timely, and each of the chapters would make for good stand-alone options for lesson plans or reports. VERDICT A solid addition to global studies or current events units or projects.--Mahnaz Dar, School Library Journal
Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.Review quotes
"This book is a resource for children and teens who also want to make a difference and may not know where to begin or may have an idea for ways they can make a difference."—VOYA
JNF050000 - Juvenile Nonfiction | School & Education
JNF024000 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Health & Daily Living | General
JNF053070 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Social Topics | Homelessness & Poverty
