Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul III: More Stories of Life, Love and Learning (Chicken Soup for the Soul) by Jack Canfield

Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul III: More Stories of Life, Love and Learning (Chicken Soup for the Soul) Reviews

• 
  Victoria Perkins

  So many reviews said that this book was generic and cheesy, and it totally is, but there were just some stories that made the read so worthwhile! Some stories honestly didn’t make much sense to me or I didn’t get the meaning behind them like Automobile Ambivalence, but even those were so fun to read. Also, I’m not really a fan of poetry, but the poetry in this book is really easy to understand and I liked it. Minimaxims For My Godson was probably my favorite.
• 
  Alex

  This was so generic, it hurt! this is like all the other chicken soup for the teenage soul books. the only difference is the "theme" of teenagers (which doesn't really affect the stories all that much). theres the usual, heart break, unrequieted love, lost loved ones, and all your other good ol' "I AM HURT PLZ BE LOVING ME" sort of thing.
• 
  Valentina :)

  This book is good to make teachers think you're reading during SSR, while you're actually staring into space. This book contains various stories on different topics written by different people in different times. :/ Some stories are really depressing, some are kind of funny because they're so random and unusual. I fell asleep while reading it. :)
• 
  Chloe

  This little book was so inspiring! I loved all the little stories and how each bring a different message.
  
  The story about self-hatred really stuck out to me. Unconditional love really is the most important gift. I saw this theme throughout the entire book.
  
  Such a short, powerful book. Defiantly recommend :)
• 
  Alice

  amazing heartwarming adorable a truely great book
• 
  Mia Rose

  How come I never read this before. I am not into short stories but these experiences always stir up something in me.. this was quite small one, others I have are lengthy.. what's the difference?
• 
  Leila T.

  I liked about three or five of the (tens of) contributions in this book, at least one of which was by an adult. I think that part of the problem in my not liking this book is the part where I'm no longer a teenager. I'm sure that the themes and writing in the book might be more appealing to a teenager than to an adult, because by virtue of being written by a peer they are valued? But honestly I think highly enough of teenagers' capacity to read and write that I can't imagine most of them liking this book either.
  
  Overall the writing was too "nauseatingly adolescent", the emotions too stereotyped, the themes too cliche. I skipped over many of the poetry submissions, which is a black mark against my character I'm sure, but after the first two or three I just couldn't scrape my eyeballs across the pages to read rhyming lines about being dumped.
  
  This is incredibly unsupportive of me, and I'm trying to find a way of explaining myself so that I don't seem like a teenager-hater, but ultimately I think I just have disbelief that out of the purportedly thousands of submissions from around the world these were the ones considered worthy enough to be published.
• 
  Miyanni 4sho

  I was so into volume one that I just went on, and on , and on to volume three. Now this book was more like the first one. This one talked abot the troubles of life and how we are to make it trough even if the next day is not promised wer still shiould believe in life. That is a qoute I made and kinda' added this qoute and related this to this book. I think ther main reason I loved this book so much is because at the time I was reading this book I was kinda of getting over the saddness of my aunt dying. So this book helped me every time I thougt about the situation and wanted to cry. So this book is for all of the teenagers that know there is something troubling them because they are always sad about certain situations.
• 
  Kehyonah Graves

  The third and final,not disappointing at all!!! It was probably the best out of three, and was the realest.
• 
  M.K. Aneal

  Very short but inspirational read(:
• 
  Amber Hennessey

  Love this book ;)
• 
  Destiny

  I love that with these books they use real peoples stories, they are compelling and teach lessons. They don't only teach the author of the short story but it teaches the reader. A lesson I learns from reading this book is to never let your feelings for someone go unsaid, that is how you loose them. I helped me realize that feelings of love and respect should never go without being said, they can affect a person's life more than you will ever know.
• 
  Elizabeth Castro

  I thought I wouldn't get past the nocuous first chapter about teen love, which felt like it was written by adults. I wondered if I'd felt that way once...but probably. I'm glad I kept reading, which lead up to real issues and situations teens face, and real feelings I have felt. Teens may want to skip the first chapter, and get to the "meat" of the book, but overall I think the book can be helpful.
• 
  Diana

  I have enjoyed the Chicken Soup for the Soul books and have a collection of them. I especially liked the ones for teenagers as I could really relate to them when I was a teenager myself. Even now I can go back and read them and be reminded of my teenage years.
• 
  Savannah

  Absolutely love these books!!
• 
  CA Kanika Mittal

  Nonsense
• 
  Carollynn

  heartwarming and full of true amazing stories of which this one stuck:
  
  Why Rion Should Live
  By Sarah Barnett
  
  High school didn't frighten me. Oh sure, the endless halls and hundreds of classrooms were overwhelming, but I took it in with all the pleasure of starting a new adventure. My freshman year was full of possibilities and new people. With a class of nearly two thousand newcomers, you just couldn't go wrong. So I, still possessing the innocence of a child concealed in a touch of mascara and lipstick, set out to meet them all.
  Spanish One introduced me to Rion. By the student definition, he was a "freak": the black jeans, the well-worn Metallica shirts, the wallet chains, the works. But his unique personality and family troubles drew me to him. Not a crush, more of a curiosity. He was fun to talk to, and where interrupted whispering sessions left off, hours of phone conversations picked up.
  During one of these evening conversations, "it," as we like to address the incident, unfolded. We were discussing the spectacular height of Ms. Canaple's over-styled bangs when I heard Rion's dad yelling in the background. "Hold on," Rion muttered before a question could be asked. I could tell that he was trying to muffle the receiver, but you could still hear the horror as if his room were a dungeon, maximizing the bellows. Then the line went dead.
  Shaking, I listened to the flatline of the phone for a minute before gently placing it in its cradle, too scared to call back for fear of what I might hear. I had grown up in an ideal family setting: a mom and a dad and an older sister as a role model. This kind of situation took me by surprise, and I felt confused and helpless at the same time. A couple of tense hours later, after his father had gone to bed, Rion called me to apologize. He told me his dad had received a letter from his ex-wife, Rion's mom, saying she refused to pay child support. Having no other scapegoat, he stumbled into Rion's room in rage.
  "I can't take this anymore. All the fighting . . . it's always there. . . ." His voice had trailed off, lost in painful thought. "All I have to do is pull the trigger, and it will be over."
  "No!" I screamed. "Don't talk like that! You know you have so much to live for." It was becoming clearer every second how threatening the situation was. A cold, forced chuckle came from the other end of the line. "Yeah, right," was his response. We got off the phone, but only after promising to go right to sleep.
  Sleep, however, was light years away from me. I was so worried and had a feeling I was Rion's only hope. He had told me repeatedly that it was hard to open up to anyone but me. How could someone not want to live? I could literally list the reasons why I loved waking up every morning. Frantically, I racked my brain for ways to convince Rion of this. Then the lightbulb clicked on. I took a piece of notebook paper and entitled it, "Why Rion Should Live." Below, I began listing every reason I could think of that a person had to exist. What started as a few sentences turned into twenty, then thirty-two, then forty-seven. By midnight, I had penned fifty-seven reasons for Rion to live. The last ten were as follows:
  
  48) Six feet of earth is pretty heavy.
  49) They don't play Metallica in cemeteries.
  50) Braces aren't biodegradable.
  51) God loves you.
  52) Believe it or not, your father loves you, too.
  53) Spanish One would be so boring.
  54) Two words: driver's license.
  55) Satan isn't exactly the type of guy you want to hang out with for eternity.
  56) How could you live without Twinkies?
  57) You should never regret who you are, only what you have become.
  
  Believing that I had done my best, I crawled into bed to await tomorrow's chore: saving Rion.
  I waited for him at the door to Spanish the next day and handed him the paper as he walked in. I watched him from the opposite side of the room while he read the creased sheet in his lap. I waited, but he didn't look up for the entire period. After class, I approached him, concerned, but before I could say a word, his arms were around me in a tight embrace. I hugged him for a while, tears almost blinding me. He let go, and with a soft look into my eyes, he walked out of the room. No thank you was needed, his face said it all.
  A week later, Rion was transferred to another school district so that he could live with his grandmother. For weeks I heard nothing, until one night the phone rang. "Sarah, is it you?" I heard the familiar voice say. Well, it was like we had never missed a day. I updated him on Ms. Canaple's new haircut, and he told me his grades were much better, and he was on the soccer team. He is even going to counseling with his dad to help them build a stronger relationship. "But do you know what the best part is?" I sensed true happiness in his voice. "I don't regret who I am, nor what I've become.
• 
  Paula

  Awesome for teens! Not as impactful for me
  Lol
• 
  Pooja Banga

  The third volume in the Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul series gives more love, support and inspiration for the series' loyal teen readers. More and more, life is a struggle for teens. Not just dealing with the tragedies that seem to plague them so often, but also handling the daily pressures that pervade their lives. This book, like the first two volumes in the series, will help them, and will serve as their guide and constant companion.
  
  Chapters focus on love, friendship, family, tough stuff, growing up, kindness, learning lessons and making a difference. In keeping with the themes and content of the Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul series, teens will also find support, encouragement and understanding from their peers, as well as from caring and compassionate adults.
  
  This is a book you will read and reread, sharing your favorite stories with one another over and over again.
• 
  Brittany

  How I Came To Read This Book: My sister owns the first two teenage chicken soup books, I own the third.
  
  The Concept: These books are really all extensions of one another, and extensions of a much larger, familiar franchise. Heartwarming (or heartstring-pulling) stories of being a teenager or encounters with teenagers that are meant to melt even the frostiest of dispositions.
  
  The Good & The Bad: These books are packed to the gills with schmaltz, and likely blur the lines between fiction and reality a bit with their preciousness. But there’s a reason why this franchise has been so popular – the stories are bite-size bits of hope that alternately delight and sadden the reader. They’re great for teens (I read them in high school) but also provide a bit of insight for parents as well, albeit a sugar-coated suburban depth of insight.
  
  The Bottom Line: There are three of these books for a reason…probably more by now.
  
  Anything Memorable?: Yes two things. One is that a classmate of mine was so moved by a story of a famous golfer that was banned from a golf course (he was black) that she read the story out loud to my advanced English course. Just because. Weirdly that same concept existed in a different vein in James Frey’s book “My Friend Leonard”. The other is I believe in the third book, which I own, a father writes a letter to his graduating child. I altered that slightly to be the last page of this notebook aptly titled ‘The Book’ that I had in high school that all my classmates filled out – it’s like a time capsule of teenagehood. A bit of a soft touch, but a nice, memorable one.
  
  50-Book Challenge?: Nope.
  
• 
  Michaela

  The main thing that I loved about this book was how inspiring and tearjerking the stories where. When i read about what these poor teens have gone through and what they have had to deal with just breaks my heart. These kids really poor their heart and soul into their writing. One story that really gets to me was one was about child abuse. A mum starts abusing her 5 children when she becomes an alcoholic and a drug abuser. Child protection agencies came several times to the house, but the kids always cleaned up and were on their best behavior. They denied everything, including the fact that their mum abused them. Then, one night there mum came home really drunk and she hit the writer of the story over the head with a lamp and she threw a vase at her sister. They could deny it all they wanted to others, but they could no longer deny what was happening to themselves. So, the girl made the hardest decision that she would ever have to make. She called child protection agencies and told them what was happening. Her sisters cried at her side to not call, because they would only get in trouble. But its been a couple years since she called now, and her and her sister have been adopted by a nice couple to treats them right. Her other sister lives with people who treat her like their own daughter. Their step sister went back to live with her dad and sadly, they lost contact with their step brother. But their lives are happy now, and that made me still believe in the fact that things dont have to stay bad forever, because you can change them.
• 
  ava

  "People have a tendency to become what you expect them to be."
  
  There's not really much to review on a book like this. It's a collection of short stories and poems written and/or submitted by teens, for teens. (Oh my gosh, I sound like an infomercial or something..) I liked it, but it's not really the type of thing I'd recommend to someone. It's more like one of those coffee table books, or the ones you keep on your nightstand but only pick up every once in a while.
  
  embarrassed to admit how long i took to finish this
• 
  Anna

  The Chicken Soup books are basically collections of stories that people send in, usually with morals, and this chicken soup book is no different. Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul talks about experiences that people had during their teenage years: frienships, hardships, deaths, lessons learned, etc. When I was younger I read the Chicken Soup for the Kid's Soul book, although I admit I mostly read the sections on deaths and hardships (What can I say, I was a very morbid kid).
  
  Sometimes it is hard to believe that the people in the chicken soup books are real: their stories are so eventful and hollywood-like, and complete with a little moral in the end. It is hard for me to connect with what most people in this book went through, although I suppose that was the intended purpose. Overall, this is a nice read for any teenager (or adult, or anyone really) who enjoys reading about other people's lives and are interested in what people learn from past mistakes. The stories form a kind of narrative on teenage life.