Chicken Soup for the Soul: Teens Talk Getting In. . . to College: 101 True Stories from Kids Who Have Lived Through It

by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Amy Newmark

Applying to colleges is stressful, and teens will appreciate reading these stories from other kids who been through it and understand the anxiety and uncertainty of the process.

Colleges are deluged with applications and the college application process has become traumatic and all-consuming. In this portable “support group” for high school students, kids share their stories

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help

380 pages, Paperback

First published November 4, 2008

About the author

Jack Canfield is an American motivational speaker and author. He is best known as the co-creator of the "Chicken Soup for the Soul" book series, which currently has over 124 titles and 100 million copies in print in over 47 languages. According to USA Today, Canfield and his writing partner, Mark Victor Hansen, were the top-selling authors in the United States in 1997.

Canfield received a BA in Chinese History from Harvard University and a Masters from University of Massachusetts. He has worked as a teacher, a workshop facilitator, and a psychotherapist.

Canfield is the founder of "Self Esteem Seminars" in Santa Barbara, and "The Foundation for Self Esteem" in Culver City, California. The stated mission of Self Esteem Seminars is to train entrepreneurs, educators, corporate leaders and employees to achieve their personal and professional goals. The focus of The Foundation for Self Esteem is to train social workers, welfare recipients and human resource professionals.

In 1990,he shared with author Mark Victor Hansen his idea for the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. After three years, the two had compiled sixty-eight stories.

Canfield has appeared on numerous television shows, including Good Morning America, 20/20, Eye to Eye, CNN's Talk Back Live, PBS, The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Montel Williams Show, Larry King Live and the BBC.

Canfield's most recent book, The Success Principles (2005), shares 64 principles that he claims can make people more successful. In 2006, he appeared in the DVD, "The Secret," and shared his insights on the Law of Attraction and tips for achieving success in personal and professional life.

Jack Canfield was born on August 19, 1944, in Fort Worth, TX. He is the son of Elmer and Ellen (a homemaker; maiden name, Taylor). He attended high school at Linsly Military Institute, Wheeling, WV, 1962. He went to college at Harvard University, B.A., 1966; University of Massachusetts at Amherst, M.Ed., 1973. Canfield married Judith Ohlbaum in 1971 (divorced, November 1976); he married Georgia Lee Noble on September 9, 1978 (divorced, December 1999); he married Inga Marie Mahoney on July 4, 2001; children: (first marriage) Oran, David, Kyle, Dania; (second marriage) Christopher Noble. He is a Democrat and a Christian, and his hobbies include tennis, travel, skiing, running, billiards, reading, and guitar.

Reviews

[Jenine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recommend this book to every teen, it tells you a lot about college in heart-tugging stories (which are real).

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this because we are between my son's Junior and Senior years of high school and college is all we are thinking about. This gave lots of different views and experiences of teens and their parents as they went through what we are going through now. I loved that I could read one story a day, or more, kind of like a devotions book, and see what it was like for others in our situation. It is kind of dated, as they talk about fat envelopes and skinny envelopes, but the stories and outlooks are relevant to what we are going through.

[Kyeong · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a parent who has a high-school aged boy, this book was very engaging. I learned a lot about the whole process of picking/preparing/applying/choosing colleges. Since I did not go to college in US, almost everything written in the stories were beneficial to me. I imagine, to people who have already went thru similar process, some of the stories might be somewhat repeating and boring. It would be a good book to read for kids in high school. Perhaps they can pick up some ideas or motivation to do something different from this book. I will suggest my boy to read it, but I am not sure he will be interested in it quite yet. Maybe Junior year.

[Leeann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy read with short essays, about 2-3 pages long apiece, discussing a variety of topics related to college from applying to visiting to acceptance/denial/waitlist to leaving and adjusting.

Fun read.

[Kim Bondocoy · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was okay. A good book to read for teens like me getting into college. :)