Inspirational essays, poems, quotations, and cartoons taken from present-day role models such as Oprah Winfrey and Michael Jordan to past icons such as Eleanor Roosevelt and Helen Keller.
What makes this book unique. . .Toni Morrison once wrote, "If there is a book you really want to read but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it." This is that book--the words I wish I had been handed when I graduated, the words I wish I could hand to the students I teach as they graduate, the words I wish we could hand to all our youth when they graduate. Because really, a diploma only says where you've been. This book says where you can go.
So why this book, and not one of the others Amazon sells for graduation? There are several qualities that make this book unique. First of all, it's the only graduation gift book with comics in it! But more importantly, it's the only book with student writing in it, written by recent high school and college graduates. It's also the only one that offers wisdom about letting go of the past, and pays tribute to the teachers and parents who made it all possible. Perhaps most uniquely, this book honors the friends we make while in school, and the sadness that often comes with letting them go.
But the book is about much more than the sadness of letting go of the past. There are also many inspirational chapters, like "Dreams of the Future", "Reaching for the Stars", and "The Meaning of Success." Also sprinkled throughout the book are humorous passages by people like Rosie O'Donnell, Bill Cosby, Jerry Seinfeld, and Whoopie Goldberg.
One last thing that makes this book unique is its variety--the other books have only long speeches, or simply short quotes, but this is the only book that has poems, quotes, comics, shorter and longer speeches, sayings and slogans from people past and present, people as diverse as Jesus, Jesse Jackson's grandmother, Joyce Brothers, Jewel, Jodie Foster, Michael Jordan, Janis Joplin, John Wayne, and John Lennon, just to mention some "J's"!
I've been a teacher for 11 years, and have been collecting inspiring words of wisdom for even longer than that. My dream is that this book will touch and inspire everyone who reads it, whether they read it from cover to cover, or simply open it to the first words they see. I believe there's something in this book for every graduate, including those who know the exact answer to the question, "What Now?" There's even a dedication page where you can write your very own words of wisdom or congratulations to your graduate, adding your voice to the multitude of others inside waiting to offer guidance, inspiration, laughter and tears to mark this most special rite of passage and the new life that's now just beginning.
