Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul II Read Free Page A

like the way you would call on a friend. We received the following e-mail from [email protected] after he had finished Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul .
I just wanted to tell you how grateful I am for this great book. I read it all the time and it really has become my best friend.
     

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While we hope the book as a whole will touch you deeply, you may find that one story in particular will change your life. Kim Price wrote to us about a story that touched her that way.
The story, "I Love You Dad," deeply touched my soul. Never had anything made me think how important my dad is to me.
Kim wrote him a letter after reading the story and he wrote back a beautiful reply that she says,
. . . boosted my confidence in myself and my love toward my family. . . . I haven't been afraid to tell people how much I care about them. I hope your stories have touched other people's lives in the way they have touched mine.
Let These Stories Help You Grow
Many of the letters we received told us how you changed something about yourself after reading a story. Diana Yarmovich wrote to us about an incident she was involved in at her school. She told us how she and some of her friends were teasing a fellow classmate and calling her gay. They were given the "punishment" of going around to different classrooms and talking about words ending in -ism, (i.e., racism, ageism and sexism). She went on to say,
The story "Betty Ann" helped me realize how the other girl felt. I now realize how wrong I was.
In another letter, Melissa Moy writes,
Every day the world looks different to me. In the morning I wake up feeling sure of myself, something that I have never experienced before. Remarkably, this book has also expanded my compassion for others.
     

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Share These Stories
This is a great book to read with others. We've heard stories about classrooms reading it together, youth groups using it to begin their meetings, and teens passing the book around and reading to each other at parties or sleepovers. Lauren Antonelli wrote to us about a slumber party she went to. All the girls had fallen asleep except Lauren and her friend, Mary Beth. They had been reading the book together and sharing which ones were their favorites. She writes,
After we put the book away, we talked. We didn't gossip though, we had a very serious heart-to-heart. . . . We talked about life, love and stuff like that. We grew closer that Saturday night and I'm not sure what happened or how it happened. But one thing is for sure, we will never look at life the same way and that is all because of a book called Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul.
This Is Your Book
Once again, this is your book. We are thrilled that this book contains more stories actually written by teenagers than the first one. We were so impressed with the stories and poems that were sent to us. They contained such honesty and wisdom. What touched us the most, however, was the desire by every person who submitted something to help others. We heard over and over, "I hope that my story can help someone else the way these stories have helped me." Even if your story isn't in here, it still has helped others, because each and every letter, story and poem we received helped make this book what it is.
We were 100 percent committed to having teenagers decide what went into this book. We learned early on that to ensure a great book, we needed to include
     

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teenagers in all the decision making. There were countless teenagers who read our final two hundred stories and some who read the final copy. We had high school students, middle school students and a youth group help us select the stories, poems and cartoons that appear in this book. They did a great job!
So here it is, another book, from our hearts to yours, just for you.
     

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SHARE WITH US
We would love to hear what you think. Please let us know how these stories affected you and which ones were your favorites.
Also, please send us any