Carolyn Helsel

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect going into this book, since non-fiction directed at educating and working with children is 100% out of my wheelhouse, but even from an adult perspective the book gave me a lot to think about and reaffirmed the work that I am already doing in terms of diversity. Obviously the book is aimed at a relatively unaware audience, who maybe needs some gentle encouragement towards some of the harder questions, and the authors do an excellent job of softly ushering them into the various topics. They cover gender, race, identity, religion, and sexuality in easy to understand language, using examples from their own lives and more anonymous examples to bring home the underlying message of the whole book: that we must be more aware, we must be willing to listen, and we must open our minds and hearts to the people around us, no matter how “different” they seem from our own experience. Grounding the whole was their simple monicker that hearkens back to the title, and makes it easy to reframe our thought patterns as we delve deeper into thinking in new ways and interacting with the world around us: rather than being Afraid, Backing Away, and Controlling the situation, they urge us to Acknowledge, Be Present, and Come Closer to learn more, and ultimately to provide Access, Build, and Cultivate a more positive and accepting world. Such a simple idea, when it’s presented so clearly, and one which becomes easy to bring into the everyday practise as we become more mindful.… (mer)