The struggle with anxiety seems rampant and real among today’s upcoming generation so this title seemed particularly relevant.  The author, Jodi Aman, writes in a conversational style with plentiful emojis and hashtags.  The philosophy and approach is a positive one with a “you’ve got this” vibe.  The author does not subscribe to the idea that anxiety is something you have to live with your entire life, but rather you can crush it and you don’t have to let it define you.  That is a refreshing and hopeful message. 

The chapters are well-organized with plenty of hands-on exercises.  This book would probably work well for 7th/8th graders on up through high school.  There are lots of good ideas and advice in here to draw upon.

Although this review was of the eBook version, I did take a peek at sample pages from the paper version/workbook.  Because that format takes advantage of some typography layout choices that make the book more interesting and has places for journaling, I suggest picking up a paper copy.

Review of an Digital Advance Reading Copy provided by the Publisher

Content Analysis:

Profanity/Language: None

Violence/Gore:  Report of how one patient suffered anxiety after a unit on WWII holocaust violence at school; brief section addressing cutting and thoughts of suicide with encouragement to get appropriate help; anecdote about how learning about the concept of death as a 5-year-old caused anxiety.

Sex/Nudity:  Brief statement encouraging any teen who has had a case of inappropriate touching to go to a trusted adult.

Mature Subject Matter:

Anxiety, depression, mental illnesses, suicide (brief), cutting (brief).

Alcohol / Drug Use:

Passing mention that some people turn to drugs as an outlet; brief mention/discussion on properly prescribed medication for depression and anxiety.