I've read so many things that aren't faithful to the teachings of the church that I always check for an Imprimatur. Yep it's right there but I was also pleasantly surprised to see that the Imprimatur was immediately below the Nihil obstat. For those of you who aren't quite as much of a geek as I am, those mean that nothing in the book is objectionable by way of the Catholic Church. I was so excited to see that!
So I'm good knowing the content is in line with Church teaching but I really want this to be something that will be helpful navigating this tumultuous time. If it's going to helpful, she has to want to use it and the cover is bright and whimsical and engaging and just leads you to open the cover and discover what's inside. Once inside, Amy uses a fun font and her warm tone to write the introduction that reads more like a personal letter to the specific girl who is reading it. Amy refers to her own efforts to understand what "Be Yourself" meant to her as a young woman and explains how deepening your own relationship with God will lead to knowing how to "Be Yourself". And she manages to do it in an open and engaging way that isn't too preachy or teachy and this sets the tone for the entire journal.
The font throughout the book is fun, the black and white with just enough color is perfect to encourage coloring, drawing or doodling. It has pages to be colored but also pages that are mostly fill in the blank. The fill in the blank pages are straight forward but lead to really going deeper than you realized. One list page I thought was simply age appropriate fun was listing favorite celebrities, but then I read the next page and it was a prayer for each of them!! What a great idea to encourage praying for people we admire. Such a simple yet powerful way to plant the seed that we can (and should) pray for everyone.
Faith, peace, patience, love, hope, feelings, gratitude, forgiveness as well as prayer and relating to Jesus and God. And everything is so interactive! Quotes from scripture and the catechism are interspersed with six Saint Spotlights highlighting women who had good days and bad days while learning to live holy lives. Throughout the journaler is gently led to discover more and more about herself, her world, her relationships and especially her friendship with God by filling in lists, writing, creating, drawing, or simply coloring.
In case you aren't sure yet, I absolutely love this journal! There really is nothing that I don't like about it. It's a nice size not too long but not too short. So much to learn and discover but not overwhelming. A bonus is I think this journal could be used for quite a span of ages. Amy Brooks' Be Yourself! a journal for catholic girls will make a great gift for any tween or teen girl on your list!
To help you check off a gift or two here's a link to purchase the book on Amazon:Shop Amazon for Be Yourself! a journal for catholic girls
