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The years of being a teenager are filled with constant change and difficult transitions as young people yearn for independence and a sense of identity. The turbulence of social situations and self-identification leads to a lot of questions. There are a lot of resources available in print and otherwise for teens, but most of them come from adults, reflecting back on their own experiences with their own biases and nostalgia. This book is written by a teen throughout her years in high school. With the additional perspectives of being both an immigrant and a Muslim in America, her in-the-moment wisdom touches on over a hundred relevant topics from social media and mental health to changing relationships and drugs. The ultimate aim of this book is to provide insight and perspective to a struggling teen from someone who dealt with the very same circumstances at the time it was written.
Every one of this book’s more than one hundred chapters are indexed and brief, allowing readers to seek out topical advice on whatever is causing them strife at that moment. The wisdom of the book is largely conventional but earnest and comes from the perspective of someone who knows how overwhelming a situation can be that an adult might think is inconsequential. Conversely, parents could also benefit from reading this book to get a better look into the mind of a modern teenager and be able to empathize more clearly with the way the world might look from their child’s viewpoint. The advice in this book is effective and actionable without being preachy and offers a friendly environment that makes it safe to communicate feelings and thoughts that might be uncomfortable to express in either direction across the generation gap.