Dream Big!: How to Reach for Your Stars

by Abigail Harrison

Overview

From Astronaut Abby, the dynamic founder of The Mars Generation, comes a book about dreaming big, reaching for the stars, and making a plan for success!

From the age of four, Abigail Harrison knew she wanted to go to space. At age eleven, she sat down and wrote out a plan—not just for how to become an astronaut, but how to be the first astronaut to set foot on Mars. With a degree in biology, internships at NASA, and a national organization founded to help kids reach for the stars themselves, Astronaut Abby is well on her way to achieving her dreams—and she wants to help others do the same!

In this book, readers will find helpful advice and practical tips that can help set them on the path toward finding, reaching for, and achieving their goals. With examples from Abby's own life, interactive activities to get readers going, and plenty of fun illustrations along the way, this is the perfect guide for anyone—of any age—with big dreams and plenty of determination. It's time to reach for the stars!

Praise for Dream Big!:

"With friendly encouragement . . . the content and approach are general enough to appeal both to STEM-oriented fans of the author as well as those whose interests lie in other areas . . . Fun and helpful." —Kirkus Reviews

"Any young person who wants to achieve their dreams will find this comprehensive book helpful." —Booklist

"The conversational style is easy to understand. . . . There are eye-catching fonts, icons, think bubbles, and callouts. . . . A recommended purchase for middle school and high school libraries. Counselors assisting high schoolers with college preparation and educators teaching leadership classes will find many of the journaling activities very useful." —School Library Journal

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593116753
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	01/19/2021
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	306,751
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.06(h) x 0.75(d)
Lexile:	1190L (what's this?)
Age Range:	10 - 13 Years

About the Author

Abigail "Astronaut Abby" Harrison (astronautabby.com) is an aspiring astronaut and the co-founder of the international nonprofit organization The Mars Generation. A rising star in her field, she holds a degree in biology from Wellesley College, has interned at a NASA-funded astrobiology lab, and currently works as a research scientist at the Jackson Lab at Harvard Medical School, and she has been featured in TIME, Forbes, Seventeen, Marie Claire, Glamour, Teen Vogue, the BBC, USA Today, CNN, and more. Abby believes that no one is ever too young to pursue their dreams—she herself is living proof of that notion—and she's determined to help as many young people as possible start reaching for their very own stars. All proceeds earned by Abby from the sale of this book will be donated to The Mars Generation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Abbyis from Minneapolis. Follow her on Twitter @AstronautAbby, on Facebook at Facebook.com/AstronautAbby, and on Instagram @AstronautAbbyOfficial.

Read an Excerpt

Contents

Introduction  
Chapter 1: Turning Dreams into Actions  
Chapter 2: Be Loud, Be Proud! 
Chapter 3: When Rubber Hits the Road: Making a Plan— and Sticking to It   
Chapter 4: Disrupting—an Essential Part of Success  
Chapter 5: Facing Your Fears  
Chapter 6: Failure to Launch  
Chapter 7: Striking a Balance  
Chapter 8: Mentorship—the Importance of Lifting People Up  
Chapter 9: Bringing Everyone to the Table  
Conclusion  

Introduction

Decide in your heart of hearts what really excites and challenges you and start moving your life in  that direction.—Commander Chris Hadfield, astronaut

Let me start out by making one thing super clear: I believe in you and your awesomeness. Really, I do! I know it’s true because I know you have a dream—maybe readily apparent or perhaps buried deep down—and I also know that you have the ability to achieve it given the right skills and tools. And I know it’s true even more so because you’re reading this book, which will help you find your dreams and learn everything you need to know to chase them!

I know from personal experience that it’s never too early to find your life’s passion and start chasing after your dreams—and, as you do so, to make a huge impact on the world. I discovered my dream when I was only about four or five years old, which was when I decided that I wanted to become an astronaut and the first astronaut to walk on Mars. I spent most of my childhood hearing that my dreams weren’t realistic, that I would someday grow out of them and I should instead choose something more attain-able (i.e., more “mainstream”). But I never grew out of my big dream—rather than changing or fading over time, my dreams only became more vivid and tangible. As I got older I decided that I couldn’t wait for a “right time” to start chasing my dreams—I had to just get started. In the face of everything in the world telling me that my dream was unrealistic, I chose to take matters into my own hands and define for myself what I was capable of.

I haven’t fully achieved my dream yet (sadly twenty-two is a bit young to be sent to space), but I have spent over a decade chasing after my out-of-this-world dream and have accom-plished some incredible things during that time. I’ve worked in a NASA astrobiology lab as a scientist; conducted research in Siberia, one of the most remote corners of the world; and reached the most incredible highs and lows on this planet by receiving advanced scuba-dive training, going skydiving, and earning a pilot’s license. I’ve met countless astronauts and other space industry professionals, toured spacecraft devel-opment and launch facilities around the entire world, been invited to speak at hundreds of locations (including in front of Congress!), worked in collaboration with an astronaut dur-ing his time on the International Space Station, and become a social media influencer with almost a million followers. On top of that, at the age of eighteen, I co-founded a successful nonprofit to support the next generation in achieving great things. I never expected to have any of these experiences, and I definitely never imagined that at just twenty-two years old I would be considered an expert on the future of human space exploration, a world-renowned advocate for my generation, an author, or the founder of a successful and impactful nonprofit organization.

But for all that I could never have predicted what my future would hold, I also know that these things didn’t just happen to me—they were a direct result of my knowing what my dreams were and chasing after them with unabashed abandon. Now I want to share how I went about aspiring to achieve the impos-sible, breaking barriers, and changing the world for the better—and how you can too! In this book I’ll share with you everything I’ve learned throughout my journey about how to discover and achieve big dreams.

Before we really dive in, let me give you a hint: chasing your dreams involves just a few broad steps. Once you have those under your belt, you’ll be well on your way. Those steps are:

—Know clearly what your dream is.
—Do your research about it!
—Form a plan of how you can achieve it.
—Be willing to be vocal and stand up for your dream.

Of course, there are specific strategies to each of these ideas, and we’ll talk about them over the course of this book. But if I’ve learned one thing through my experiences, it is that hav-ing and reaching for a dream can be incredibly powerful. Finding your dreams and having the knowledge and skills to act on them gives you the ability to garner support from those around you, plan for your future, and cultivate bravery in the face of uncer-tainty. You can change the world, and you don’t have to wait to start doing it. 

This book will expose you to the lessons I’ve learned about finding and achieving dreams and guide you through a series of interactive, self-reflective activities designed to help you find your dreams, grow your confidence, and learn the skills necessary to chase after success. Join me as I show you step by step how I pursued my goals and dreams and how you can too. Let’s get going and start dreaming big!

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

Chapter 1 Turning Dreams into Actions 5

Chapter 2 Be Loud, Be Proud! 33

Chapter 3 When Rubber Hits the Road: Making a Plan-and Sticking to It 69

Chapter 4 Disrupting-an Essential Part of Success 11

Chapter 5 Facing Your Fears 140

Chapter 6 Failure to Launch 168

Chapter 7 Striking a Balance 196

Chapter 8 Mentorship-the Importance of Lifting People Up 231

Chapter 9 Bringing Everyone to the Table 267

Conclusion 290

Editorial Reviews

Praise for Dream Big!:

"With friendly encouragement . . . the content and approach are general enough to appeal both to STEM-oriented fans of the author as well as those whose interests lie in other areas . . . Fun and helpful." —Kirkus Reviews

"Any young person who wants to achieve their dreams will find this comprehensive book helpful." —Booklist

"The conversational style is easy to understand. . . . There are eye-catching fonts, icons, think bubbles, and callouts. . . . A recommended purchase for middle school and high school libraries. Counselors assisting high schoolers with college preparation and educators teaching leadership classes will find many of the journaling activities very useful." —School Library Journal

From the Publisher

02/01/2021

Gr 5 Up—This interactive guide teaches strategies for readers to achieve their dreams. Harrison, an aspiring astronaut, aims to be the first person to land on Mars. This goal motivated her to cofound an international STEM nonprofit called The Mars Generation. The text asks readers to first identify a specific dream, break down the dream into smaller action steps, and then craft an elevator pitch to share with others. Advice is provided on how to overcome fears and possible failures while achieving a balanced life and avoiding burnout. Harrison also emphasizes the need to seek out mentors and become a part of a diverse community to learn from others' perspectives. The conversational style is easy to understand. Chapters feature inspirational quotes from athletes, scientists, activists, and entertainers. The text includes the experiences of notable people who have overcome obstacles to achieve their goals. For example, the adventurer Bear Grylls overcame a spinal injury to eventually climb Mount Everest in 1998. There are eye-catching fonts, icons, think bubbles, and callouts. The illustrations depict characters with light and dark skin tones; one girl wears a hijab. There are also guided journaling activities, with prompted lists, questions, and charts. The content is appropriate for middle and high school, with many of the strategies being pertinent to college and adult readers as well. VERDICT A recommended purchase for middle school and high school libraries. Counselors assisting high schoolers with college preparation and educators teaching leadership classes will find many of the journaling activities very useful.—Maile Steimer, Jones M.S., Buford, GA

School Library Journal

2020-10-27
The 22-year-old founder of the nonprofit The Mars Generation “Astronaut Abby” offers advice on setting and accomplishing life goals.

Harrison wanted to be an astronaut since early childhood, so when she was 11, her mother challenged her to make a plan and consider all the steps she would need to take to achieve her dream. In this conversational guide, Harrison walks her readers through the same process, providing personal reminisces alongside workbook-style exercises. She writes, “Big dreams don’t require big actions; they just require a consistent pattern of small actions.” Like many self-help books, this one elides the unavoidable impact that systemic oppression can have on marginalized people’s goals, but it still contains a lot of useful suggestions. With friendly encouragement, it introduces concepts like the elevator pitch, SMART goals from the world of business management (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Timely), “accountabilibuddies,” and burnout. Minibiographies of notable achievers outside the space world, like Elaine Welteroth and Nabela Noor, add interest and inspiration. Recent college graduate Harrison, who is on her way to fulfilling her dream of becoming an astronaut, has pretty good stories herself, though, like the time she hung up on Buzz Aldrin or when she piloted a plane out of an uncontrollable spin. The content and approach are general enough to appeal both to STEM-oriented fans of the author as well as those whose interests lie in other areas. Harrison reads as White; many of the black-and-white illustrations include diverse representation.

Fun and helpful. (Nonfiction. 10-16)

Kirkus Reviews