DREAM BIG!
How to Reach for Your Stars
By: Abigail Harrison
Published: January 19, 2021
Publisher: Philomel Books
Non-Fiction
Abigail Harrison chose to dream big from the very first moment she decided to be an astronaut. At the age of four or five, she dreamed of being the first person to walk on Mars. She spent her childhood focusing on that one dream, putting herself in line to learn all she could about Space, and doing her best in school (especially in math and sciences). This book offers comprehensive advice to middle-grade kids that have big dreams themselves.
Abby begins with defining dreams, passions, and goals. Then with interactive chapters focused on all the steps to take, she lays out the process to achieve their dreams. The book includes activities in each chapter for kids to work through their passions, goals, steps to follow, and how to manage their time.
Abby gives kids excellent advice and doesn’t hold back on the importance of determination, perseverance, and making connections to people in the field of their dreams. She also emphasizes that there will be failures along the way and how important it is to learn from those mistakes, slip-ups, or miscalculations. I appreciated her honesty here as I see how easily kids can get frustrated at school. She strongly encourages kids to look hard at what went wrong and maybe realize, they just aren’t ready for this step yet.
“In most cases, chasing after a dream is a marathon, not a sprint.”
Abigail Harrison
I also liked how Abby focused on teaching kids to build good habits and a routine. This will not only help them with their future goals but their day-to-day life in school and for the future, no matter what they decide to do.
If you have a high-achieving or determined child, this book can help them narrow down their focus, put some plans and direction in place, and move forward in the direction of their dreams. Even though Abby had a dream to become an astronaut, this book applies to kids with all kinds of dreams including being a pro-athlete, a doctor, a teacher, an entrepreneur, or a writer. Your child can DREAM BIG and Abby will help them with the steps it takes to get achieve it!
Abigail Harrison, also known as Astronaut Abby, is an American internet personality and science communicator, particularly in the area of the United States space program. Harrison is the founder and current leader of The Mars Generation, a 501 nonprofit. For more about Astronaut Abby, check out her website, HERE.
To purchase a copy of DREAM BIG!, click the photo below:
All summer I’ll be sharing books for kids of all ages on topics that will interest them or offer them a new interest to learn about. Most of the time these will be nonfiction books, but sometimes we can learn how to be better people or learn empathy from fictional stories too.
So, I hope you will stay tuned to these posts. They will always have Summer Read-to-Learn in the title and in the tags. There will be books from some of my favorite publishers like National Geographic, plus, some from independent publishers. See them all, HERE.
Other posts you might like:
Thanks to the publisher for sending an eBook for the purpose of this review. This review is my honest opinion. If you choose to make a purchase through the above links, I may receive a small commission without you having to pay a cent more for your purchase.
Posted Under Abigail Harrison, Book Review, Children's books, goal-setting, middle-grade, non-fiction, space, STEM