Kid President's Guide to Being Awesome

A buoyant young YouTube celebrity's experiences and outlook spawn 240 pages of uplift.It's all hung on a 100-point (!) program for awesomeness that begins with "Put down your phone" and ends with "Start writing on a page and then lose track of..." (and is helpfully repeated at the end of the book as a checklist). This patchwork assemblage of slogans, photos, recipes, instructions, side projects, short interviews with dozens of activists, and banter with co-author/producer/brother-in-law Montague boogies along as energetically as its (now) 11-year-old frontman. The irrepressible Novak was propelled to viral fame by the 2012 video "Pep Talk" (included in transcription, with new cartoon illustrations). He lights up his subsequent encounters with fellow celebrities from President Barack Obama and Beyonce to Justin Timberlake and Timberlake's grandma-as well as such bright if less-visible luminaries as the founders of a beauty pageant for special needs participants and "Make a Stand," a lemonade-based anti-child-slavery initiative. Blending generalities with specific actions, the life advice runs to upbeat witticisms like "Don't sweat the small stuff. Life is short and deodorant is expensive"; "Don't be in a party. Be a party"; "High five your dentist"; and "Practice the art of the unexpected burrito." It's organizationally overwhelming, with a design aesthetic that seems to spurn consistency across more than four pages. Light as air, sneakily earnest, chock-full of worthy silliness: "Be like cheese (or bacon) and make everything you touch better." (Self-help. 9-13)

May 1, 2015
Grades 3-6 Ten-year-old Novak became a YouTube sensation with his Kid President series, coproduced by actor Rainn Wilson, which encourages positivity and cooperation with funny pep talks and celebrity interviews. He brings the same brand of irrepressible optimism to his first book. Through lists, diatribes, quotes from great thinkers, inspiring profiles, and cartoons, the Kid President team offers 100 suggestions for kids and adults alike to make the world more awesome. Kid President fans will not be disappointed, as corn dogs and dance parties are featured frequently, but even readers with no familiarity with his online persona will find his winsome personality impossible to resist. Plenty of interviews with inspiring young people who are agents of positive change serve as the backbone of the book's message. A dynamic mixed-media layout of photographs, illustrations, and fan submissions punctuate Novak's platform. Even the most ardent cynics will find themselves laughing along with the Kid President's silly but hugely insightful musings.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)