Rising Troublemaker

This young readers edition adapts Professional Troublemaker, the adult book by Luvvie Ajayi Jones, a Nigerian-born writer, blogger and cultural critic who runs the blog Awesomely Luvvie. Written for teens, it uses candor and humor to encourage young readers to show up as their most authentic selves, so they can help build a world they would be proud to live in.

The author acknowledges that the world can feel overwhelming, full of threats that make it hard to ask for what you need, speak your mind, or bring your whole self into a room. Many people also tell young people that the way they show up is too much. This book argues the opposite: be too much, and use that energy for good. That, Jones explains, is what it means to be a troublemaker.

Jones draws on her own experience. As a child she was punished for her mouth when she objected to things she saw as unfair, and classmates mocked her Nigerian accent. When the time came to call herself a writer, fear held her back. The book is the one she wishes she had had during those years.

At its heart is the idea that the bold, beautiful life you want lies on the other side of doing things that frighten you. The book offers practical encouragement for facing and confronting fear so that readers can start living that life now.