Sadie Robertson’s “Live Original” is a BFF for today’s teens to follow – Book Review

Could Sadie Robertson be the Judy Blume of this millennium?

Book Title: Live Original
Author: Sadie Robertson with Beth Clark
Publisher: Howard Books ( Imprint of Simon & Schuster)
Genre: Biography
Pages: 203
ISBN: 978-1-4767-7780-1
Published: 2014

(Review originally published September 11, 2015 at My Little ShangriLa)

It’s a tough world out there for both teens and parents. Finding positive role models in an era inundated with an anything-goes, loose-morals mindset is not easy. Temptations are many, peer pressure plays out on a more dangerous platform than ever before and a teen’s guiding light is too often the blinding blaze of the media.

Enter Sadie Robertson, star of A&E’s “Duck Dynasty” and Dancing with the Stars Season 19 runner-up.

Sadie has just penned her first book, Live Original, an inspirational memoir that could very well be what many a teen might be in need of to lean on for support, direction and inspiration. Perhaps one may think the 18-year old TV star might be out of touch with reality and not able to understand what real teens are going through. But that’s not the case. In fact, to the contrary.

Sadie understands so well what teens of today are going through, one, because she is a teen, and two, because she is thrust into the spotlight where it is so easy and so tempting to go astray. She has real parents, real rules to follow, real responsibilities and real repercussions should she mess up. She confesses her own self-image and social pressures and posted a very raw and candid video reaching out to others who may be experiencing the same.

Be yourself is Sadie’s most candid advice.

“I’ve been thinking about the world lately, the things that influence us every day, what people do and say, what they value, how they live and what they think is cool or right.

I guess I could try to fit into ‘the world,’ but fitting in is not what’s most important to me”

~ Sadie Robertson ~

And while being oneself may not always seem an easy summit to reach, Sadie invites you in Live Original to travel along in her teenage world and know that she is up against the same pressures that other teens face. She openly shares her thoughts and God-guided wisdom on how to navigate today’s teenage playing field with poise, self-respect, integrity and fun. Yes, Sadie is quite fun. She is not a guarded and protected celebrity out of touch with reality. And it is for those very reasons that she reaches out in her memoir to others opening up on issues of parents, dating, social media, friends, peer pressure, fashion, self-respect and living by your own rules of integrity.

Live Original reads light but is deep in practical and usable inspiration. It’s a book by a teen for teens and you can feel its connection as soon as you pick it up. It’s got down-to-earth, no frills cover art, emblazoned with Sadie’s signature smile. Inside you’ll find each chapter artistically separated by polka-dots, which makes you feel you’ve picked up a letter from a friend rather than a celebrity book of guidance. Each chapter is brief but packed with anecdotes, advice, Biblical passages and understanding. Before the close of each chapter Sadie sums up her thoughts and offers readers a thought-provoking challenge coinciding with the chapter’s theme.

The last time a companion of this nature hit the shelves was Judy Blume’s 1970 best-selling Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret (Also published by a division of Simon and Schuster) Blume’s novel, a bit racy for its time, daringly and openly broached teenage growing pains. And although some teenage struggles may be universal in theme, it was a much different world in 1970. Today’s teens wrestle with those same universal growing pains but at a level of dangerously epic proportions. Sadie Robertson may just be the Judy Blume of the millennium. With poise, grace, dignity, frustration and inspiration, Sadie shares her desire to be who she is, to stand firm on that ground and how to handle things when the earth below her feet starts to shake.

Live Original is not a moment too late. It is a well-written, deeply moving, thought-provoking, book of practical and contemporary understanding and wisdom. It’s a friend that today’s teens can feel comfortable following and parents can rest easy having around.
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You can purchase your copy of Live Original any time. And you can follow Sadie at home.