Wise, witty, and worthwhile advice for readers navigating their 20s.
An advertising professional shares her life lessons for 20-somethings in this debut guide.
Douglas started her own advertising career at age 21 and spent the next 10 years documenting what she learned. Thankfully, she converted her personal journal into this engaging manual that specifically targets those in their 20s with “relatable advice in the areas of work, love, practical adult life, and personal growth.” The author pays off this promise in a jaunty guide that has plenty of personality. She writes in a conversational, down-to-earth style about her own experiences, translating them into words of encouragement and positive reinforcement for others. The volume comprises eight well-organized chapters with simple titles like “Time,” “Love,” and “Work,” bookended by a “Title Lesson” and a “Farewell Lesson.” Sprinkled throughout are “prompts”—questions accompanied by blank spaces so readers can do some journaling of their own. Particularly appealing is the chapter structure. After a brief introduction, each chapter is divided into numbered sections that identify observations or suggestions, using subheads followed by brief explanatory text. Some are metaphorically related to advancement or motivation (“The greatest mountain ranges have more than one peak”), while others are more direct (“It’s what you bring to the table, not how long you’ve been sitting at it”). By dividing the content in this way, the author highlights many key life lessons yet makes the sections easily scannable—a neat trick that turns material that might be considered heavy reading into a less intimidating collection of digestible nuggets. This format seems perfectly attuned to a generation raised on texts and shorter bursts of information. Douglas writes frankly about love, advising that “when choosing a partner, find an addition, not a completion.” Her commentary concerning work is valuable; for example, “Find the sweet spot where your talents and values meet. Work there and stay there.” The author is at her best when she is doling out counsel about entering adulthood: “On the fence isn’t a bad place to be for a little while. You can see things from there that you can’t see on either side.”
Wise, witty, and worthwhile advice for readers navigating their 20s.Pub Date: April 5, 2022
ISBN: 978-1647423209
Page Count: -
Publisher: She Writes Press
Review Posted Online: Nov. 23, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A sharp, entertaining view of the news media from one of its star players.
The veteran newscaster reflects on her triumphs and hardships, both professional and private.
In this eagerly anticipated memoir, Couric (b. 1957) transforms the events of her long, illustrious career into an immensely readable story—a legacy-preserving exercise, for sure, yet judiciously polished and insightful, several notches above the fray of typical celebrity memoirs. The narrative unfolds through a series of lean chapters as she recounts the many career ascendency steps that led to her massively successful run on the Today Show and comparably disappointing stints as CBS Evening News anchor, talk show host, and Yahoo’s Global News Anchor. On the personal front, the author is candid in her recollections about her midlife adventures in the dating scene and deeply sorrowful and affecting regarding the experience of losing her husband to colon cancer as well as the deaths of other beloved family members, including her sister and parents. Throughout, Couric maintains a sharp yet cool-headed perspective on the broadcast news industry and its many outsized personalities and even how her celebrated role has diminished in recent years. “It’s AN ADJUSTMENT when the white-hot spotlight moves on,” she writes. “The ego gratification of being the It girl is intoxicating (toxic being the root of the word). When that starts to fade, it takes some getting used to—at least it did for me.” Readers who can recall when network news coverage and morning shows were not only relevant, but powerfully influential forces will be particularly drawn to Couric’s insights as she tracks how the media has evolved over recent decades and reflects on the negative effects of the increasing shift away from reliable sources of informed news coverage. The author also discusses recent important cultural and social revolutions, casting light on issues of race and sexual orientation, sexism, and the predatory behavior that led to the #MeToo movement. In that vein, she expresses her disillusionment with former co-host and friend Matt Lauer.
A sharp, entertaining view of the news media from one of its star players.Pub Date: Oct. 26, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-316-53586-1
Page Count: 528
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
A sweet final word from an actor who leaves a legacy of compassion and kindness.
The late actor offers a gentle guide for living with more purpose, love, and joy.
Mixing poetry, prescriptive challenges, and elements of memoir, Heche (1969-2022) delivers a narrative that is more encouraging workbook than life story. The author wants to share what she has discovered over the course of a life filled with abuse, advocacy, and uncanny turning points. Her greatest discovery? Love. “Open yourself up to love and transform kindness from a feeling you extend to those around you to actions that you perform for them,” she writes. “Only by caring can we open ourselves up to the universe, and only by opening up to the universe can we fully experience all the wonders that it holds, the greatest of which is love.” Throughout the occasionally overwrought text, Heche is heavy on the concept of care. She wants us to experience joy as she does, and she provides a road map for how to get there. Instead of slinking away from Hollywood and the ridicule that she endured there, Heche found the good and hung on, with Alec Baldwin and Harrison Ford starring as particularly shining knights in her story. Some readers may dismiss this material as vapid Hollywood stuff, but Heche’s perspective is an empathetic blend of Buddhism (minimize suffering), dialectical behavioral therapy (tolerating distress), Christianity (do unto others), and pre-Socratic philosophy (sufficient reason). “You’re not out to change the whole world, but to increase the levels of love and kindness in the world, drop by drop,” she writes. “Over time, these actions wear away the coldness, hate, and indifference around us as surely as water slowly wearing away stone.” Readers grieving her loss will take solace knowing that she lived her love-filled life on her own terms. Heche’s business and podcast partner, Heather Duffy, writes the epilogue, closing the book on a life well lived.
A sweet final word from an actor who leaves a legacy of compassion and kindness.Pub Date: Jan. 24, 2023
ISBN: 9781627783316
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Viva Editions
Review Posted Online: Feb. 6, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2023
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