I'm Gonna Push Through!

October 15, 2019
A picture-book encapsulation of the author's Push Through education movement. An extensive author's note explains that Wright came up with the "words and hand movements of the original Push Through mantra" as a teacher endeavoring to explain what "resilient" means. She says she "wanted [her students] to know that their past doesn't define them, their present doesn't have to hinder them, and their future is waiting on them." While readers may find strength in this affirmation, they may also note it seems wholly reliant on individual perseverance rather than systemic change to dismantle oppression. The primary narrative opens with the statement "YOU can push through anything!" while illustrator Wright depicts a young brown-skinned child in profile, hair in beaded braids, and looking determined. The next spread shows the same child with hands over ears against discouraging comments and then smiling and looking out at readers, hands extended to say, "I'm gonna push through!" Ensuing pages show children of different races, genders, and abilities all repeating the "push through" mantra in the face of adversity. Also depicted are diverse famous people (bios in the backmatter) who've "pushed through" to meet success, including President Barack Obama, activist LaDonna Brave Bull Allard, and physicist Stephen Hawking. It's encouraging--but not revolutionary in its call for individual grit rather than collective change. (Picture book. 5-9)

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October 21, 2019
Jasmyn Wright, educator and founder of the Push Through Organization, encourages readers to explore their potential, stretching themselves beyond what may seem like impossibilities. “If someone tells you it’s too hard, don’t you ever listen. You tell them, I’m gonna push through!” The latter refrain, an empowering mantra the author developed for her third grade students, punctuates the text, which is more rallying cry than narrative (“What if it’s too hard? I’m gonna push through!”). Jasmyn highlights people who have persevered (“Barack Obama... He pushed through!”), and an index offers a short biography of each. Wright’s illustrations aptly relay the range of emotions felt in vulnerable situations, representing an inclusive array of figures flexing their stamina across obstacles such as math problems, sports, and making new friends. An emboldening read for managing self-efficacy. Ages 4–8.