A great book. I’d love to read this to my special needs kiddos. I would definitely add this to my school library,

As someone who is constantly looking for books that I can add to my educator toolbox, I was really excited to flip through Happy, Health Minds. This book is amazing in theory, but the execution of it is somewhat problematic. I think that the book generalizes the life experience of a single child. Not all children have the same home life or emotional/mental structure, and although a lot of teachers or care providers teach many children at once, I feel that generalizing the experiences, especially the home life of children can be risky. I love the idea of this book so much, but the book assumes a lot. I think the author tried their best at creating a simple understanding of a lot of really complex ideas, but the result was not the best.

This reviewer is a mother and a doctor. I would characterize this as a children's mental health handbook, but one that is inconsistent in the tone of its delivery. It has mixed appeal for adults and children. First, I find it only partly successful in utilizing friendly cartoons and illustrations to increase its attractiveness to a younger audience. Without such, it would definitely be much too wordy and dry for any but the most motivated adolescent. As I began reading, I was puzzled by whether the vocabulary and phrases were aimed at the adult audience or children. [For example: Muscles wear away if we don't use them, which is why a lot of adults "spend their time running on peculiar machines with rubber mats that go nowhere."]

To aid me in unravelling my confusion over whether young readers would actually like this book, I recruited by own thirteen and sixteen year-olds as test subjects. I asked them what age group they thought would be most receptive to the preachings offered in this guide. They narrowed it down to ages 10-11 (Grade 6 level) by virtue of the expansion in vocabulary that is usually being encouraged at this age, the amount of "adults aren't cool" sarcasm being used, and the superficialness of the selected topics. The consensus of my young assistants was that the messages in each section are well-intentioned, but over generalized. They appreciated the fact that many of the perspectives are child-centred (instead of parent-centred) and therefore validating for a young reader's thoughts and insecurities. However, they noted (and I totally agree) that too many dumbed-down examples are used to explain the key points. Its leaves the overall impression of being repetitive and boring.

Thankfully, I do not think the authors intend this volume to be read cover-to-cover (good luck with that!) as the table of contents is arranged in a non-linear, pictorial fashion, with sections showcased in bubbles. Key topics are: Parents, Screens, Bullies, How Old Am I?, School, Friends, Your Body, Separation, The Adult World, Nature, Patience, Confidence, Anxiety, Anger, Feeling Misunderstood. One of the reasons that I think some sections are over-generalized is because I can imagine some kids jumping to a certain topic and not finding the reassurances or guidance that they might to seeking. Some sections, despite the repetitive use of examples, left me wondering if the take home message would be sufficient. These are some of the examples of "take home" messages from these chapters, as I understood them: Parents - you can't choose your parents so learn to accept them, School - school is a fairly modern construct that doesn't teach you all the things you need to succeed in life, so don't sweat about not doing well in it, and Friends - learn to be the kind of friend you want others to be for yourself.

I hope some may benefit from this book. However, I wouldn't be recommending it myself, either personally or professionally.

Thank you to Myrick Marketing & Media for providing me with an E-ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

"Happy, Healthy Minds" by The School of Life is a middle-grade non-fiction book all about maintaining a healthy mindset. It touches upon parental relationships, school, friendships, future careers, self-care, among other topics. This book also provides some worksheets for the reader to sort out their thoughts and ideas.

I believe "Happy, Healthy Minds" is a great resource for kids, and I would have truly benefitted from reading it when I was younger. Even now, at 21-years old, I learned a couple new strategies for approaching conflict, which was refreshing (but the book is definitely still aimed towards kids and I wouldn't generally recommend it to adults as a learning resource). A wide range of topics and scenarios are covered in this book, and I think it could really help a lot of kids process their emotions. I really loved the writing style of this! I also loved how it was broken up into different parts.

However, I did find that it wasn't very inclusive and that it generalized a lot of information, specifically in regards to family structures. I did appreciate that there were Queer parents included in some of the illustrations, but generally, I found that when the authors talked about families, it was quite exclusive. In every situation or scenario, there were always two parents, and there was always a mention of a mom and a dad. Of course this is the case for some kids, but there are some families with only one parent, or same-gender parents, or even more than two parents of any gender. Furthermore, the idea that a kid could perhaps not be living in a biological household but instead in a foster home or with adopted parents was completely ignored. As well, there was hardly any mention of the scenario of an abusive or unsafe living situation, and I think that in a book about mental health and mental wellbeing that should have been explored. Obviously there are countless family structures that kids can have and it would be impossible to include advice for every single one, but I think the authors could have done a better job by at least exploring the idea of more different families beyond the illustrations that are included.

Overall, I would definitely recommend for parents to share "Happy, Healthy Minds" with their kids, but then I would suggest having a discussion with them about the depiction of families in the book. Besides that, however, it is a great learning tool for kids and I'm happy it exists. 3/5 stars.

A resource for elementary age children to deal with emotions, relationships, confidence, parents, teachers, etc. All the things you may not learn in school but affect your well being. I think this resource would be better with a kid friendly version and this version for the parent. For a kid friendly version not to dumb it down but to not be so self-indulgent. The parent section actually was a little disturbing for me. It painted parents with a broad brush and did not deal with the authority of parents. In fact, authority was not dealt with at all and that leads to a turbulent relationship when authority is not established. Some home situations are not good and children need advocates for those situations. The goal was to understand parents but I felt that parents were undermined in this goal.

There is so much information packed into this book and I think with the help of teachers, parents, grandparents, and any of those with authority, this book would be helpful to workout those tough emotions that can lead to destruction and pain. The book was engaging as it gives tools to think about for example what job or future a child may be thinking about and how to determine what your passion may be. It also dealt with expectations of others and how unmet expectations lead to anger. There is a balance with this topic and each child, parent, and teacher is different however, it gives a starting place for a conversation and what to look for. Do I think kids will pick up this book on their own to read it, I don't know of any kid that would. However, if a parent is looking for different ways to communicate with their kids, this might be a good tool to get it started.

A special thank you to Myrick Marketing Media and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review

Title and Title in Conflict; Not Well Done

I found this to be a peculiar book on several levels. First, it wasn't really clear what age range this book is meant for. Parts of it seem to be for those under the age of 10 while others seemed more geared toward tweens or teens. The book lacks focus and specificity. While the title states this is about happy, healthy minds, the subtitle states it’s about emotional well-being. I don't necessarily equate emotions with the mind—and certainly not solely with it. As I am an RN, when I read the first part of the book where it equated this book to talking about a healthy body, I thought it would address more the potential psychopathologies children could suffer than the more squishy and nebulous concept of emotions (yes, I hadn't read the subtitle closely!). Children of all ages, unfortunately, do suffer from real and very difficult mental issues, and I don't think this book adequately addresses them. In fact, sometimes I thought the author talked down to kids who could have real problems and who need real help and solutions (not the generalities or platitudes in this book). The author also glossed over the idea that families can be dysfunctional and that not all parents are good parents. Nearly a third of the book addresses parents, so this unrealistically rosy view is a real problem with this book; it could further marginalize at-risk children. I felt like the author made things too simple or general. Kids are pretty smart these days, and if they are picking up a book like this on their own, they're hoping for actual solutions to their problems. This book is simply poorly done, unfortunately. By the way, it does use British English, which is not a problem in and of itself if it is known beforehand, but American children may question the “strange” spellings (e.g., colour vs. color) and different word choices (e.g., mum vs. mom).

Unfortunately, I did not care for this book. It seemed unclear who the target reader was supposed to be at times, with text more suitable for preteens to mid teens and some I think even adults would find unnecessary (particularly parts discussing history as examples).

I found most of the advice is rather general, as other reviews have stated, which is fine sometimes as it may be the best but it seems rather unnecessary to read then. There are some rays of light sprinkles throughout - I think some of the written exercise questions could be useful, and the general concept of recognizing mental health is certainly important.

There were some things I found troubling in how surface level they were as they neglect to dig deeper to real issues that some children could be facing. I recognize this book is not to solve all problems but I worry some readers might take away the message that these are the answers.
Perhaps if this book is read along with a trusted adult or is used by an adult to discuss with children it could accomplish more and I would feel more confident and comfortable with it.

I think this book would benefit from a strong edit/reworking. The content is a mixed bag, and the tone is also mixed. What is the intended age group? I can't determine if the target reader is 8, 10, 12, or 14 years old!

It's also very text-heavy. I can't imagine many children (or adult) reading this cover to cover, especially when the same advice comes through no matter what the problem - just think positively and all will be well. The tone borders on condescending at times, as if the writer doesn't have much experience talking to children. Children are smarter than the writer seems to understand. The "advice" given is so basic and generalized that there can't be many children who haven't already heard these phrases from every single teacher in school, on television, and on social media.

More importantly, the author does not even nod at the possibility that the reader may be in genuine need of help. Arguably any child who picks up a book about self-esteem very likely does have real self-esteem issues, but the author doesn't seem to understand that these issues can be very deep and complex. For example, telling every child that "your parents love you and want the best for you" assumes that no child comes from a dysfunctional family or that every "issue" with a parent can be solved with a simple change of mindset. Doesn't that confirm to an abused child that it is somehow their fault for not being nice enough to their parents?

Thank you for an advance copy in exchange for review. I am very sorry my review is so negative, but it is my honest opinion.

I did not like this book. As a teacher and reader I had problems with this book. First off, I don’t think the term “mind problem” is productive. It implies that there are problems within our mind and I don’t think that’s the right term or association for children, it carries negative stigmas. More appropriate words could’ve been used. Next, I thought the book was extremely over generalized, for example in the “Parents” section the book stated that parents choose to be together. What about arranged marriage or a situation of abuse where a person faces repercussions for leaving (financial or otherwise). I wouldn’t recommend this book in any capacity.

This is a great resource to help children learn how to have a happier and healthier life especially in the way they think. My daughters loved this book. It’s definitely one we’ll return to again and again.

This book is wonderful. My son and I dove right in and it’s compelling and helpful, a real treasure for helping kids understand their emotions. Written with just the right tone.