Description
Product Description
INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!INSTANT #1 INDIEBOUND BESTSELLER! Anyone who's ever been underestimated or overshadowed will find inspiration in this empowering new picture book from Meena Harris, New York Times-bestselling author of Kamala and Maya's Big Idea.
When a young girl sees a strong woman on TV labeled as "too assertive" and "too ambitious," it sends her on a journey of discovery through past, present, and future about the challenges faced by women and girls and the ways in which they can reframe, redefine, and reclaim words meant to knock them down.
As Ambitious Girl says:
No "too that" or "too this"
will stop what's inside us from flowering.
From School Library Journal
PreS-Gr 2—The niece of Vice President—elect Kamala Harris probably knows a thing or two about this topic: A girl can never be too ambitious. A young girl—she is brown-skinned, with black hair, but there is no ethnic background that is not included in the many crowd scenes of this jolly, positive book—infers from the world around her that she is too confident, too ambitious, too loud, too proud, and too confident. The quick moral? Don't let the world judge you—"You tell them who you are." The story is inclusive of all girls and some nonbinary folk in uplifting illustrations that shout the lessons, that "too" is darkly overwhelming, but women before her have opened doors. Here, also, is the quote children everywhere have been learning in this political season—"You may be the first someday, but don't be the last—make space for more!" The colors intensify throughout the story until the resonant end. VERDICT A welcome addition to any library collection; the endpapers full of affirmations would make a wonderful poster for any wall.—Andrea Pavlik, Huntington Public Library, NY
Review
"I love that Ambitious Girl both shows and tells—it shows a girl who looks like my own daughter and tells her, and her brother, that women’s ambition is powerful and something to be celebrated." ―
Mindy Kaling, Actor, producer, activist, and New York Times bestselling author
"I know a thing or two about being called “ambitious" as an insult. But ambitious girls fight for change. Ambitious girls lift up their communities. Ambitious girls run for president. Ambitious girls can do anything. This celebration of girls' ambition is timely, inspiring, and much-needed." ―
Hillary Rodham Clinton
"Ambitious Girl is such an important children's book, because it defines ambition in different terms than we're used to. We are so often told ambition is a drive toward professional success, but Ambitious Girl knows it's so much more — it's a drive toward owning your life and humanity. When we, especially girls, are taught about ambition it often comes with an inherent competition, that there's only one slot available. I love that this book breaks that myth. I know Meena and her family live by these beliefs, and I'm so grateful she has put it down in beautiful words to share with the rest of us."―
Kristen Bell, Actor, Producer, Activist, and New York Times Bestselling Author
"This wonderful book tells young girls what we have ALL needed to hear but haven’t heard nearly enough: Ambition is good, and girls who are ambitious achieve great things and help others. This delightful book is a must read for every little girl."―
Padma Lakshmi, Author, UNDP Goodwill Ambassador and ACLU Artist Ambassador for Immigrant and Women’s Rights project
"Being ambitious means daring to be different and being willing to break the mold. That can be scary, but with Ambitious Girl by her side, young girls will know they can do anything."―
Issa Rae, Actor, producer, activist
"A pep talk, a call to action, and a beautiful story. This book reminds me of so many bedtime conversations my mother and I had when I was growing up. Our girls are powerful and limitless."―
Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley
"A pep talk, a call to action, an