Storybooth

by Storybooth, David SanAngelo (Illustrator)

Overview

“Compelling . . . important . . . Be sure to leave this out where kids can find it.” –Booklist

“Their powerful stories, along with the compelling animation, help build empathy and respect for differences—key components in the fight against hate.”   -Deborah Lauter, Executive Director, NYC Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes, 2019-22.    

“Storybooth reminds us that authentic, youth-curated, real world narratives are incredibly resonant and can move our nation to act! “ - Michael H Levine, PhD, SVP, Nickelodeon

From Storybooth—the YouTube storytelling sensation with over five million subscribers—comes a full-color, illustrated compilation of never-before-seen and classic stories that combine the compelling storytelling of Humans of New York, the affirming tone of Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul, and the “you can” attitude of The Confidence Code for Girls. 

Everyone has a story.

These are ours.

Each one of these tales connects you to someone you never knew. A real person, sharing their lived experience. Exciting, inspirational, heartwrenching, uplifting, humorous, devastating, thought-provoking—TRUE.

Storybooth illustrates for readers that no matter what is happening in their world, they are not alone.

Real stories submitted by real people, Storybooth allows each contributor to speak for themselves about their experiences, imparting a myriad of raw, achingly honest, and deeply soulful truths with the power to touch each and every individual reader. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780063057937
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	07/19/2022
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	631,022
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.70(d)
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Storybooth, a digital platform created by Marcy Kaye and Joshua Sinel, invites teens to record and submit their own stories with a chance to have them shared with the world. Embarrassment, heartbreak, challenges, triumphs; sad, serious, or funny—storybooth looks for all kinds of stories—they just need to be real. 

Editorial Reviews

Compelling . . . important . . . Be sure to leave this out where kids can find it.” — Booklist

“Storybooth is an innovative, effective outlet for youth to relay their personal experiences of being bullied because of personal characteristics.  Their powerful stories, along with the compelling animation, help build empathy and respect for differences—key components in the fight against hate.”   — Deborah Lauter, Executive Director, NYC Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes, 2019-22

"Storybooth reminds us that authentic, youth-curated, real world narratives are incredibly resonant and can move our nation to act! We have left the next gen a horrible mess: this compilation of poignant stories and artifacts offers real hope that the future will be brighter if we help kids gain the acceptance, understanding and voice they need to thrive." — Michael H Levine, PhD, SVP, Nickelodeon

From the Publisher

09/01/2022

Gr 8 Up—Written by young adults for young adults, this illustrated collection of personal stories from digital platform Storybooth reads like a candid, intimate anthology about a wide range of difficult, emotionally charged experiences and realities. As the unnamed authors reveal moments of their past or present, their true accounts carry heavy emotional weight as the creators identify and express their emotions and, sometimes, their hard-won lessons about embarrassing school scenarios, being bullied, racism, homophobia, insecurities, peer pressure, eating disorders, loss, self-harm, relationship dynamics, social media stresses, and more. While readers will often find neither resolutions at the stories' ends nor advice concerning how to deal with these struggles, the book's purpose is clear: readers can see they are not alone, as other teens offer plain proof that they feel or have felt the same. With short topic phrases marking the start of each new voice, the teens' anonymous accounts vary in length, ranging from a few sentences to several pages; each story includes poignant artwork or graphic novel—like compositions that reveal both inner turmoil and outward emotions through SanAngelo's sharp colors, bold lines, and stylized representations of people. Since the stories are arranged in no particular order, readers may find it difficult to immediately access specific stories pertaining to their own circumstances. The book includes a valuable resource page listing hotlines and organizations that can offer help and support. VERDICT Centered on difficult, emotional struggles and experiences, this collection of young adults' personal truths offers readers an intimate means of connection and realization that they are not alone.—Rachel Mulligan

School Library Journal

2022-04-27
An illustrated anthology of submissions from young people to the Storybooth YouTube channel.

Anonymous contributors of varied ethnicities narrate vignettes presented through text and comics panels. Suffering dominates, as the protagonists confront subjects of perennial concern (such as racism, abuse, and challenges in friendships and romantic relationships) as well as other problems that reflect newer, present-day issues. They worry about infecting others with Covid-19, the isolation of remote schooling, and humiliating themselves in an online classroom. They’re bullied with AirDropped nudes and embarrassing photos gone viral on someone else’s Instagram. The lack of systematic organization or content warnings prefacing certain topics results in troubling juxtapositions, as when a deeply traumatic story about being raped at the age of 10 is followed by one about feeling guilty for kissing a boy at summer camp who was not the subject’s boyfriend. A contribution about self-harm is situated next to a piece about not being able to afford expensive sneakers. The cartoon-style illustrations show a trans boy who appears feminized compared to the portrayals of cis boys; a story about homophobia from a gay Muslim boy shows a terrifying, witchlike, chador-clad teacher in black waving a wandlike pointer; stories of victimized fat contributors are pure prose, lacking any images, but some antagonists are needlessly shown as fat; and the moms are sometimes oddly sexualized. Readers deserve to have their voices told, but they also deserve a coherent, ethical arrangement of their misery.

Stories of genuine trauma reduced to jumbled, comfortless pain tourism. (resources) (Nonfiction. 13-18)

Kirkus Reviews