‘How to Be a Person’ by Catherine Newman is a practical guidebook for life. With wit and wisdom, it teaches essential life skills in an engaging graphic novel style. From making a bed to sticking up for someone, this book empowers readers to become more dependable and confident as they navigate growing up.

Useful little book that will teach kids helpful life skills, with a humourous disguise!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for letting me access an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest feedback.

Brilliant book, really easy to read and share. We read lots around this subject and had many debates and chats as a family. Really insightful.

We love this little book, We read it in homeschool and talk about the basic things we need to know how to do and do well in life. The learning is easy and the illustrations make it fun. We try to work on the objective in the book each week.

I was hoping to share this with my 2 children as it sounded perfect unfortunately I was not able to download it at the time so was unable to read and review. Will look to purchase it for them instead.

I feel like this book has a lot of really great suggestions for things to be sure you know as you "become grown." :) It's hard to really figure what you don't know sometimes, so even I learned a thing or two! My oldest is only 8, but this is/will be a nice way to check off all kinds of life skills.

How to Be a Person is an excellent guide for kids ready to take on the world, and even for those not quite ready. The graphic novel style and touches of humor will keep their attention while imparting vital wisdom for facing life’s big and small challenges.

A fun and creative way to be interactive with an audience (the reader). Love the illustrations and the humour used. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to have a bit of a laugh and uplift their spirits.

"How to Be a Person" by Catherine Newman should be on the must read list for every tween and/or teen. I know a few adults that could even benefit from some of the tips in this book as well. This is a fun guide book that tackles important topics in a light-hearted way.

This was a fantastic guide for young people about how to complete everyday tasks around the home and the wider world. With step by step instructions and simple, eye-catching illustrations children can learn a range of skills from being a good host and cheering up those who are ill, to doing the laundry and calculating a tip.
While clearly aimed at an American audience, there are skills here that all young people could do to learn as they begin to develop their 'adulting' skills! I'm sure some adults could also use this guide when just moving inot thier own homes!

I received an eARC of this book from the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I missed downloading this book before it was archived but I did buy the paperback to give to my daughter. She is turning 10 and is a big fan of guidebooks so she said she really enjoyed the way it was written - how it was kid-friendly and showed illustrations to help you understand how to do the different items. I really liked the variety of skills that were in the book and that I can use it to help my kids be well-rounded and HELPFUL. There were things in there that I didn't think about at this age - like how to write a condolence card for a lost pet or pack for a trip. There are also pages of great skills and practical tips like how to do laundry or clean a bathroom. All and all, I really appreciate this novel but it's definitely something you need in the paperback form and not the ebook.

How to Be a Person by Catherine Newman is such a gem!! I requested this book to review because we have been talking (a lot) with our almost 10-year-old about basic yet important life tasks lately. And after spending the last 3 months will our kids 24/7, I can tell you there is plenty for them to learn, LOL. 

As parents, we are quickly realizing just how many things we will be guiding our kids through during the next stage of parenting life with tweens and teens...While the physical demands of daily parenting are much different than the baby and toddler years, the amount of emotional energy that goes into this stage of parenthood is intense, and it can feel a little daunting!  
I love that these simple yet important life skills are covered in a simple and easy to consume manner. This book is filled with tips and tricks and has a perfect balance of information and humor. I found it was an enjoyable read and our son found that the writing was accessible and relatable. 

How to Be a Person covers a wide array of topics like how to take care of houseplants, implement a money management system, creating a simple and balanced meal, and how to write a condolence card. I was super excited to add a hard copy to our home library (I pre-ordered it last fall!!) and I basically squealed with excitement when it arrived in the mail this week.

I know this book will come in handy for years to come and highly recommend it to anyone parenting kids from elementary school to college years...and beyond!

Thank you to Storey Publishing for the advanced galley in exchange for an honest review.

My Thoughts
Of course I was a kid myself years ago (gasp, go my kids! You were a kid once?! just kidding….), and I had to or automatically learned many of the skills outlined in this book. They were things we did, simply because. The present generation, and the skills they learn automatically, are different, and thus makes this book more necessary.

As a parent who constantly shifts between letting my kids (teens) learn by practice or even more effective, from their mistakes, and badgering them on the hows-whats-whys of the everyday tasks that are seemingly mundane but totally important, and simply giving up and letting them figure it out when they need to do it all by themselves, this book is a boon. While we try to inculcate many of these and I do know that my teens know at least part of these very basic skills, there are some that get missed because we don’t realize it needs to be taught or it gets lost in all the eye-rolling!

This book helps with all those missed skills, and the humor, cuteness factor, and practical, no-nonsense as well as age-appropriate (no speaking down), plus non-parental conversational style along with the fun two-tone cartoons definitely strengthens its cause.

It includes the following sections:

Other Beings (How to Care For the People, Pets, and Plants in Your Life)
Saying it Right (How to be Kind and Get Your Point Across)
Dirty Things (How to Clean and Care for Your Home)
Edible Food (How to Make Meals and Find Your Way Around the Kitchen)
You’re Wearing That (How to Clean and Care for Your Clothes)
Your Two Cents (How to Get, Give, and Spend Money)
Useful Skills (How to do Basic Important Things)
So there you have it, from watering plants to writing a thank you note to addressing envelopes, and from boiling an egg to folding clothes and figuring out whether to buy that item all your friends have as well as to use that screwdriver, this book teaches it all. And I loved the pop quizzes sprinkled throughout the book!

In Summary
Definitely recommend this for tweens and younger teens; and just about anyone who will benefit from these basic skills.

Hint, hint: A perfect gift item for the young one of this age group that you know (even if it is your own!)

Disclaimer: Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the eARC of the book; these are my honest opinions after reading this book.

A worthwhile addition to any tween focused collection. There’s a lot of great tips — even some that adults will appreciate it. Written in an engaging yet informative way.

I'm always looking for excellent books to give to my bookclub kids has the move on from my little library. I think I've found a new winner!!! Also, totally buying this for my kid with some rubber gloves and a plunger!

How to be a person offers young people tips for different life situations such as interactions with family members or other people, using words in different situations in writing, making themselves useful around the house by doing *gasps* chores, how to cook basic meals, how to wisely earn, save, invest and spend money, and random, but useful to have skills.
Although the book is targeted to children and it's a good starting point for the child that wants to be more grown-up, it's also like a refresher for older tweens and teens as well. I personally, as an adult, learned some tricks from this book, but I'm not telling which, hehe! The writing is friendly and not at all parent-y or sounding patronizing. The illustrations are lovely and they make the reading even more enjoyable. For an adult, this book would look cool and cheery as a coffee table book.

If you are without life skills or raising a human to have life skills, this is the book for you. It covers very basic skills everyone should have to be an adult in this world. Great ideas and explanations.

My favorite quote is “If you are responsible for a particular chore – scooping the cat litter or changing the hamster’s bedding, say – be sure to do it, even if it’s gross.”

Everything from how to wrap a present to how to contact your political representative to how to apologize is covered. There is even a section on how to clean and care for your home. This includes items like how to clean a bathroom and make a bed. The food section teaches simple items to cook such as scrambled eggs or boiling spaghetti. I particularly liked that a section of taste and seasoning food is included.

My favorite item was how to turn a 33-cent package of Ramen into dinner. It even teaches how to wash dishes, and clothes. The folding tips are invaluable.

All kids need to know how to save money, use a debit card and calculate a tip. This book contains so many useful tips that every page is valuable. Every young person I know is getting a copy for Christmas. This is the best book for young people available.


I received an ARC from Storey Publishing, LLC through NetGalley. This in no way affects my opinion or rating of this book. I am voluntarily submitting this review and am under no obligation to do so.

This is an amazing How To book for kids! It is divided into seven chapters, each addresses a topic. For example, Saying It Right covers apologies, thank you notes, and addressing envelopes among others. You're Wearing That? gives laundry tips (including how to remove stains) and how to sew on a button. The information is immensely practical, but is presented in a winsome and often humorous way with colorful, complementary illustrations. Newman expands beyond the physical realm to include information on philanthropy and tips on being happy. Highly recommended for six and up.

Thank you to Storey Publishing and NetGalley for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.

How to be a person - Catherine Newman
Published by: Storey Publishing
Publication Date: May 2020

“We swear we’re not trying to turn you into a premature adult [...] with a suit and a briefcase”
This first line had me in giggles already. Throughout this book, Newman shows children how they can ‘be an adult’ by doing acts of kindness such as help the elderly or help someone who is sick. Children in this modern world cannot wait to become adults. What sets this book aside from others like it, is the mature language used to engage the children and convince them they are little adults. A lovely read. ARC courtesy of @netgalley - Thank you. #book #bookreviews #howtobeaperson