This is a timely book that should appeal to middle school students. It is written in a clear, concise style on an extremely important topic. I like how the author will run through different scenarios to illustrated her points. This book should help middle schoolers navigate tricky interpersonal situations.

I really wanted to like this book. It had some great ideas but for me it just fell flat. It was not something that could hold my child's attention, nor mine.

Middle school can be difficult for lots of kids but this positive and affirming guide just might help them get through those bumps in the road.

This is like a child’s first self-help book. It’s written like the ones for adults with more pictures and things that are easier to understand. This first book is all about social power. How to have it how to weld it how to use it to make sure that you have an awesome middle grade or high school year. This is about self-confidence and that social power isn’t about being a bully or about being tread upon, but about being an equal to those around you. Overall, I really did like this book except there’s one breakout point where it talks about 7500 people were studied and they were talking about your inner locus, your central locus, and in the study people who had this central locus, were most likely not to be overweight at the age of 30. They had some other statistics but the fact that that was the first one said there may be a correlation this study but it’s completely out of place for this book and what they’re talking about and I wish the author had used a different statistic rather than that one because it could leave some kids to think that hey if I do this, this book says I will lose all this weight. This could lead to an unhealthy mental situation for some kids.

I think this book is informative and a great resource for anyone working with kids. The graphic novel style of the book and the realistic scenarios help tweens understand the topics covered.

3.5 stars rounded up.

So my eldest child is now in middle school, and as someone who did not go through the American system for that span but who does have a husband who thinks it's the most formative experience of a child's life, it has been a bit nerve-wracking, to say the least, to watch my little fledgling fly. We try to rear him well at home but, let's face it, navigating tricky middle school relationships, fueled by hormones and kids' experimentation with social dynamics, is stuff we can't guard against, and for the most part shouldn't. As this book reminds us, learning how to handle complicated relationships as a teenager sets you up, hopefully successfully, for adulthood.

But who couldn't use a guidebook in that endeavor? Enter the American Psychological Association and their newest series of books aimed at middle schoolers (and only coincidentally their parents.) The first in the series is the very relevant How To Master Your Social Power In Middle School. Written in a lively conversational style, with a hybrid pictorial format a la my eldest's favorite Diary Of A Wimpy Kid series, this is an easy-to-read self-help book for kids struggling to understand why other kids are suddenly so mean to them in middle school and, most importantly, what to do about it.

The book is formatted clearly, from an explanation of what social power is, what good and bad examples of it are, then steps for dealing with the problem of being on the receiving end of social imbalance. It assumes, ofc, that the reader is not the one being the colossal jerkface, and outlines not only how to stand up for yourself but also how to rehearse for such (in a very cute chapter about role-play that I can totally get behind.) It encourages confidence and self-belief, and instils not only the seeds of assertiveness and proactivity but also the knowledge that you don't have to be friends with kids who are terrible.

And I love all that. I escaped my adolescent years with my self-esteem intact, in large part because I believed in facing my fears and not giving in to self-doubt or peer pressure. I truly want that for my kids. As a way to stand up to kids who aren't exactly bullies but are definitely on the meaner side of the relationship spectrum, this book is an invaluable resource.

What I didn't love were the weird metrics for self-control casually inserted into the text. Like, kids who have a good locus of control are more likely to grow up to be adults who aren't overweight or depressed, as asserted here? Um. I imagine that the studies used for these were carefully controlled for other factors, but that just seems like bad science to me. It honestly made me a little uncomfortable, this intimation that depression or weight gain are tied to self-control and not the chemical changes that many of us can't help as we age.

Anyway, that was my only critique of this otherwise helpful handbook to navigating the socially treacherous world of middle school. I enjoyed reading it a lot, and my eldest peeked into it from time to time, tho he hasn't yet had reason to worry about experiencing the contents yet. I'm just glad that I'll have a valuable tool for helping him out should the need arise!

How To Master Your SOCIAL POWER In Middle School: Kid Confident Book 1 by Bonnie Zucker & DeAndra Hodge was published August 30 2022 by Magination Press and is available from all good booksellers, including <a href="https://bookshop.org/a/15382/9781433838149">Bookshop!</a>

How To Master Your Social Power was a really eye-opening book for me. I think this book has potential to become a tool for child psychologists and counselors when combined with other supportive resources to dig into social/emotional barriers in children. I also think that the book is a bit misleading in some respects in that it makes difficult and complex concepts and skills seem easier than they are, especially seeing that many adults struggle with the concepts and skills described! For that reason I wonder how successful this book would be in the hands of a parent and child team that didnt already have a strong skillset in boundaries, self compassion, emotional availability, etc. Because this book could easily be self-shame-inducing for those without the resources to understand the root causes of their thought patterns and behaviors stemming from trauma, for example. Some of the highlighted quotes in the book I found a little cringeworthy, such as "You are not helpless!", which to me can be taken as shaming. I also wish the book would have spent more time discussing self compassion.

How very interesting! Love this and books that help kids deal with issues that are generally not discussed at school and thought to be normal such as having friends, making friends etc etc. I hope you make one for anxiety in kids as well.

Must read for ALL middle schoolers!

This fun middle grade self-help book is presented with fun graphic novel like illustrations and easy to digest facts. This guide explains topics from social power dynamics to modeling good friendships. It also delves into self-confidence and growth mindset thinking. What a valuable tool for teens going into middle school or those already there.

This book should be a requirement for all health classes across the nation!! Full of life lessons & skills.

Grateful to have received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley & American Psychological Association, Magination Press

Every kid should read these. School can be hard and this book had some good advice! Loved it! There’s motivation and inclusions and just overall important life messages.

This book is a guide for middle grade/middle school children who would benefit from more information about social dynamics and healthy relationships with peers. It is divided into 10 chapters, and is a little over 200 pages which include diagrams and illustrations. While intended to be read by young teens and preteens, it is also a great reference or resource for adults working with this age group.

The author describes scenarios that are likely to happen to middle grade youth, including the use of social media platforms like tiktok, current tv shows and present day slang/acronyms like "straight up" and FOMO. I like that there are both positive and negative examples so that readers can identify what they should expect or how they should behave as well as recognize when something happened that was not ok and how it could be better dealt with in the future. It is important to show youth both the negative and the positive version of situations to help them identify which of their current relationships are positive. For example, young people may be so concerned with "being popular" that they may ignore being mistreated by someone, thinking that this is ok, if they can't see that there are other ways to be treated, they may not know when to stand up for themselves. Additionally, it may give readers a chance to reflect on their own negative interactions, for example times they may have said something that is hurtful, and realize what they could have done/said instead. Seeing both sides rather than just negative or just positive will be helpful for young people to begin to identify what healthy relationships with friends should look like so they can be aspired to, as well as what unhealthy relationships look like so that they can be avoided.

Her explanations and definitions are very easy to understand and are written in a way that will help middle graders understand without being condescending or making them feel that they are little kids. She also summarizes each chapter with "take aways" and includes some short activities in text boxes that encourage readers to reflect, and quizzes (think teen magazine quiz) that help readers consider specific scenarios that relate to their life and relationships. Additionally, the use of fun fonts, simple illustrations, easy to understand diagrams will help keep readers interested.

I do think that the length of the book/amount of text may be a bit off putting for some middle schoolers. If a reader is really motivated to read this book to learn about social challenges and how to overcome them, then I think they will be interested in this book and read it all the way through but I'm not sure about those readers who might really need this information but not be as motivated. As a grade 3 teacher, I can think of some former students who are now in the grade 4-8 level that could definitely benefit from reading this book. Some of them I think would gladly dive in and read all about things like power differential and negative thought patterns, but others might be put off by how much text there is to read. I like that the book is broken up into chapters, has a variety of text boxes and illustrations and activities to break up the text a bit, but I'm not sure that all middle school aged students would stay interested throughout the book. I'm wondering if maybe having a companion text, like a magazine or shorter books may be better received. I'm not a publisher, so who knows, but from the perspective of a teacher considering specific students who I know would benefit from this book, I'm not sure how it would be received.

I would love to have a teacher's companion text with some lessons or activities though! I think that the background info and scenarios in this book are so great that I can definitely find ways to incorporate them into lessons, even with my Grade 3s who are a bit younger than the intended audience. I would highly recommend this book to parents of children in the age 9-13 range who are struggling with social challenges at school such as bullying, difficulty maintaining friendships or social anxiety. I think that teachers and guidance counsellors could use parts of this book as well when working with individual students, small groups or potentially even whole class activities. Thanks so much to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review this awesome book!