Love everything about this picture book! I like how it presents life situations that not only young girls could relate into, but teens and ladies also will be able associate themselves to some of the predicaments cited. I can relate to some of these circumstances such as being too quiet and outspoken; but that's who I am, and that's what this brilliant book wants to impart to the readers.

Anyone should live not to please anyone; not to live to the norms just because it is the standards. As long as you're not hurting anyone, you should live to what your heart desire because it is your life and no one should dictate what you should and should not do.

💡GIRL POWER!!!💡

This book!!! Oh, my goodness!!! Please buy a copy for EVERY. SINGLE. GIRL. you know!!! By girl, I'm talking ages from newborn to 100 plus years old.

As girls we grow up being taught so many conflicting things and then told to apologise, well, basically for being a girl. We're too fat. We're too thin. We're too quiet. We're too loud. It's the real Neverending Story.

In The Girl Who Said Sorry, girls are not told to be sorry for who they are! Let's just celebrate that for a moment ... While encouraged to own their mistakes and ensure their choices and words don't hurt anyone, they're told IT'S. OK. TO. BE. UNAPOLOGETICALLY. YOURSELF. Hallelujah!!!

This is one of the most powerful books I've ever read. So simple yet so profound, I want to read this book over and over again until I unlearn all of the sorry conditioning I've ever been exposed to. Can you imagine a world where girls don't apologise for being who they are? I can't, but I desperately want to!

Hayoung Yim, this book makes me so proud to be a woman! Thank you!

Marta Maszkiewicz, your illustrations are exceptional! They're so soft yet so strong at the same time, and they capture the feel of the book brilliantly.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley (thank you so much to NetGalley and Independent Book Publishers Association for the opportunity) in exchange for honest feedback. If there was an option to give more than ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️, I'd be giving this book every star I could find.

Blog review will go live on the release date!

*thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

5 stars.
What an important book! Its short, sweet and beautifully written in poetic writing. This is sure to appeal to all ages. The message is one alot of people need to hear. We all need to know that we dont have to be sorry for being ourselves if we are not harming anyone. Ofcourse if what you do does harm, ofcourse apologising is needed. But like the little girl in this book, she was simply being herself and nobody has the right to try and change her when shes not doing anything bad. The illustrations are gorgeous! They are so simple, but so beautiful at the same time. I would definitely recommend reading this and have it given to children, although its also an important book for adults too who are still children at heart.

First and foremost, the premise behind this book is brilliant; teaching young girls to express themselves with confidence, something that is so important of this day and age of social media and an influx of messages about how young people should look and behave. The message here is quite an unusual one, but one which which most would do well to remember; that the apologetic language we have come to accept as the norm, can actually undermine our self-confidence - we shouldn't have to apologise for who and what we are.

To put it simply, I absolutely adore this book. The storyline is so simple but so powerful, and complemented so well by the black and white sketch-like illustrations with little splashes of colour. And finally, 50% of profits from the sale of each of these books is donated to Girl Up, a UN campaign dedicated to empowering young women to take action on global issues. 5 stars all round!

Although this is written as a children's book, <i>The Girl Who Said Sorry</i> is a familiar tale for every female. It expresses the frustration of the constant state of living within double standards, be great--but not too great, be thin--but not too thin, speak your mind--but stop talking. It's purpose is to address all of those things that girls and women immediately apologize for because that's the way we've all been raised. And it rightly points out that being apologetic for being yourself is something we all need to move away from.

Delightful book for children. Just a few pages, a few pictures, and a few words but a POWERFUL message! Buy them for the children you love, all of the ones you want to gift with courage to be themselves!

This was a very short story for girls. The whole point of it is to tell them that they should be who they are and not apologize for it.
The message was great, the drawings were amazing. I would definitely buy that or something of the sort for my daughter (whenever I have a daughter).
It was so short though, 16 pages counting the covers, it barely felt like an actual story...

Fabulous premise for a children's book. We have a young female neighbor who apologizes every other breath, so I was particularly interested in this book to perhaps recommend to her and her family. Very strong start in explaining why women feel the need to apologize and the constant mixed messages that girls receive. However, the resolution was a little too abrupt and clean. If all of the adults around her were disapproving of behavior, how can a young girl just suddenly decide not to care?

7/10

The Girl Who Says Sorry does a great job at highlighting the ridiculous double standards girls are held to, the contradictory information they have to navigate every day and how guilt and apologising are used to oppress women and girls. It encourages girls to stop apologising and be themselves, which is a message they need to hear so much more!

It could be better, however. The character realises that apologising so much is 'very silly'. Having the character berate themselves for behaving the way they were expected to is not helpful and adds to the problem. Additionally, the main point of the book is 'I will not apologise for actions that don't hurt anyone else' and I think this is too abstract. What counts as an action that hurts someone else? This is difficult to work out even as an adult! Much of the oppression of women and girls is based on the fact that they hurt men's feelings, by for example being too assertive. If a girl tells a boy he's being silly and he cries, how is she supposed to work out that she didn't really hurt him? So in fact saying 'I will not apologise for actions that don't hurt anyone else' still leaves the lines blurred and doesn't help. It should have given some concrete examples of what she shouldn't have to apologise for, for example 'I won't apologise for wearing what I want,' 'I won't apologise for eating what I want' or 'I won't apologise for speaking up.'

Overall, this is definitely a step in the right direction and we need more books that reinforce this message!