If you have ever read Everything you need to know to pass middle school math, then you will like this book too. The author talks about her personal math struggles while also giving tips and advice on ways to 'get' math. It also has a middle school feel to it to relate to that level of students more. ( )

This is a personal reflection from Danica Mckellar's experiences through her school years to how she ended up becoming a math teacher herself. This book is to empower women to help them love math in a conversational storytelling way. Lessons are given in the book in a way that makes them engaging to learn for the reader. She is showing it's okay to be smart! A lot of advice is given in a way to be useful not only in school but takeaway to use in real life as well. This is a great book to encourage students to read, and also as a teacher to use for tips and tricks to make an engaging lesson. ( )

I sure could have used this book as a teen. Bless her for helping girls out and trying to lead them to careers using math. ( )

This is another book by Danica McKellar that helps students to begin to understand and like math. This book can be used in 3 ways: 1) the student could use it to do homework problems or study for a test; 2) use it o learn about math concepts that he/she is unsure about; and 3) just read it from beginning to end. In addition to math, the book discusses topics girls are interested in. For example, "Do you pick truly supportive friends?" I will use this book, but just leave the girl talk out when speaking to the whole class. ( )

I am placing this book in the specialized category, but it is also a reference book, almost a text book. I have very mixed feelings about this book. Then there are repeated sections that read like articles from Seventeen magazine. Because there are so many different things going on in the book, I will dissect them apart and evaluate each aspect. The different aspects I will review are this book as math text book (specialized category), as reference book, as girl-support for academic achievement sections, and as popular topics of interest for girls. First I must admit that my advanced generation standing will show in some of my comments. It is totally possible that young female users who are the audience of this book may not find the crowded pages and information stacked on top of itself the drawback that I find. This generation in middle to high school now are veterans of multi-tracking information sources simultaneously. I will definitely have Danica McKellar's books available as resources in my classrooms and I will steer girls (I don't think boys would put up with all the stories) to them. This generation may not know the author as an actress, but she is a great cheerleader for girl's achievement in math and science. Just the fact that she studied and loves math and has written math books makes this book worthwhile.
First The review of Kiss MY Math as specialized book and reference book. This book covers pre-algebra in a standard specialized format which has chapters devoted to single areas developing from simple to more complex. The titles are an attempt at being "catchy" and may work with the intended audience. I will watch my students' reactions to the book. I can imagine that these books will sit on my SSR reading lending shelves. The index is an extensive part of the access features. However, I can't recall a student I have ever tutored in fifteen years actually using the index. Does that skill not begin until college? While the book is way too crowded to use as a text book, I can see students utilizing it to review areas of trouble. Her explanations are standard for algebra, but include so much text reading as to be off-putting to most students. The cover design features a very movie star photo of the book suitable to Seventeen complete with story teasers such as "20 ways to beat stress" and "What guys really think about smart girls." The audience of young females knows this book is for them. There is no bibliography. The author thanks her many math teachers. Each page is stuffed with content. There are organizing graphic motifs that run throughout the book to identify sections such as Doing the Math, Watch Out, Quizes, Informational Polls, and testimonials. If I were to rate this book only on it being a specialized math book and reference, I would rate it lower than I have.
I have rated this book 4 Stars because of these last two aspects. This book is an excellent cheerleading source for females who are navigating the dangerous waters of high academic functioning during the teen years. I can remember reading everything I could about smart girls. There wasn't much. So I applaud this book for this feature. Our society still does not deliver a supportive message for academic achievement for girls, and barely for boys. Our popular culture is so anti-intellectual in general. The academic achievement pep-rallies could be all for naught, because they might not be read very much except for the real HOOK of this book- the popular support sections that could come straight out of Seventeen. All of the polls about what boys think about smart (athletic) girls, quizzes about "Do You Pick Supportive Friends, and the many stories about used-to-be awkward or not popular, but now educated, and successful young women will, I think, pull many readers in. Since the book is so crowded, they will have to read many of the positive supportive parts while they are pursuing the popular culture sections. For that I will have McKellars books on my shelves in my math classrooms and will encourage girls to read them. ( )

I was surprised by Danica McKellar’s Kiss My Math: Showing Pre-Algebra Who’s Boss. My embarrassing bias against McKellar’s past celebrity status (Winnie from The Wonder Years) led me to judge this book by its cover—what was this (I asked myself), a fashion/gossip magazine? No, it’s a competently written and incredibly fun approach to working through pre-algebra concepts and components. McKellar’s book is broken into five parts for a total of 18 chapters covering topics that range from integers to graphs. Kiss My Math would definitely appeal to girls who either struggle with junior high math or are simply looking for a fresh and fun approach to the subject. Kiss My Math, does at times gets bogged down in girl-magazine metaphors but overall it stays on track and remains practical. Also recommend D. McKellar’s Math Doesn't Suck: How to Survive Middle-School Math Without Losing Your Mind or Breaking a Nail (2008). ( )

Mint-egers. Negative numbers compared to nasty-flavoured jelly beans. How pandas can help you remember the order of operations.

This is not an academic study of math anxiety, or a pedagogical text giving lengthy theoretical descriptions; this is an actual review book. Contains exercises and techniques that can help a student sharpen their math skills, and a teacher/tutor sharpen their teaching skills! Too bad about the relentless heterosexism, but if you can get past that, the book contains lots of concrete ideas that actually work. ( )