CH9. Encouraging Media and Information Literacy.
It should be read by more people. Honestly.
If you don't read half of the book, check out this chapter at least. (page 164 sums it all up if you're super busy and can't read the whole thing BTW)

Man what a sad book, but sadly necessary for the dark time we're living in. Looking forward to adding it to our collection.

“[R]esearch should be communicated carefully, and with nuance, so as to avoid stoking excessive fear.” - Melinda Wenner Moyer*

“Youth is a time of learning and preparing for adulthood, and that means helping young people identify and navigate risks, not avoid them.” - Jacqueline Ryan Vickery (as quoted by Moyer)*

This is a rich, research-based resource. I appreciate that most of the book was backed by science (I would have liked it even better if there were more thorough in-text citations in places). While I may not agree with or take all of the advice in the book - for example, I’m not going to let my very young daughter have sleepovers at the house of anyone I don’t know extremely well - the general principles are true: our job as parents is to prepare our kids, not just protect them. It is well-written and easy to read, helpfully organized into chapters based around topics such as financial literacy and technology usage. This book is full of fantastic and well-considered tips for parents. It even has some reassurance on the dreaded topics of social media and screen time!

I give it 4.5 stars rounded up to 5. As a parent and teacher, I definitely recommend this excellent book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the free eARC. I post this review with my honest opinions.

*Please note that I received an advanced review copy; final edits may change these quotes before the book is published. The ideas behind the quotes still hold true throughout the book.

This review is cross-posted on Goodreads; it will be posted on Amazon and Instagram upon the book’s publication