Editorial Review For The World Is Yours
Dounia is the kid in class who does not have an answer when
the teacher asks what everyone wants to be later in life. Everyone else seems
sure, and she feels stuck. So she goes out to the garden to talk with her
mother. Together they walk through everything she likes and everything she is
good at, from helping others to cooking and loving plants. Each idea turns into
a bigger dream. She could be a doctor for unicorns and dragons, an animal chef,
a designer of special tree houses, an astronaut who teaches kids about space,
and even the Pumpkin Queen running a huge pumpkin patch. In the end, Mama shows
her that grown ups can have more than one job and that dreams can change over
time. Dounia realizes she does not need to choose only one future and that the
world really is open to her.
The strongest part of this book sits in the way imagination
grows from one idea to the next. Every possible job becomes more playful and
specific. A doctor is fine, but a doctor for magical creatures is the one
Dounia actually wants to talk about. A chef is fine, but an animal restaurant
with carrot cake for bunnies and seed cakes for birds feels much more fun. The
story keeps that pattern going without losing track of the quiet talk in the
garden. The relationship between Dounia and Mama stays steady, even while the
jobs keep getting bigger. The examples of real adults who already balance more
than one role also land well, so the message does not feel like pure fantasy.
Dounia basically builds a whole resume before she even finishes one afternoon
in the yard, and it works.
This story fits neatly with picture books that focus on
careers, big dreams, and family talks about the future. It uses a familiar
setup, the classic class question about what you want to be, but it twists it
toward choice and change instead of one fixed answer. The mix of realistic jobs
and fantastical spins gives it the feel of a career book and a daydream at the
same time. The idea that adults can hold more than one role and that dreams can
shift as you grow ties it to newer stories that tell kids there is more than
one path and that life can hold a few at once.
Young readers who feel pressure to have an answer for
everything will likely see themselves in Dounia. Kids who enjoy animals, space,
magic, or big food ideas will also latch onto the specific jobs she imagines.
Teachers can use this in class for a talk about future plans that does not end
with one short answer per child. Caregivers who juggle different jobs might
smile at Mama’s examples and might even feel a little called out in a kind way.
This review uses only the content provided in the manuscript.
Overall, The World Is Yours feels like a gentle nudge
to think wide instead of narrow. It respects kids who cannot pick just one
thing, and it quietly gives them permission to dream in many directions. If you
like the idea of a kid answering the “What do you want to be” question with
about ten careers and a moon mission, this book belongs on your shelf.