Ever wondered how to talk to your kids about the dangers of social media? Then drop everything and get a copy of The Amazing Generation: Your Guide to Fun and Freedom in a Screen-Filled World by Jonathan Haidt and Catherine Price, illus. by Cynthia Yuan Cheng.

If you saw our picks for the Best Middle Grade books of 2025, you’ll know that we raved about this late-year entry. Loosely adapted from Haidt’s groundbreaking adult nonfiction The Anxious Generation, this title meets the social media generation where they are at in a way that no other book on responsible tech use does.

Rather than speaking from a place of blame or shame, Haidt and Price explain in accessible terms how tech companies program algorithms and market apps to exploit young users, regardless of the long-term harm it causes. From there, the book encourages ways to rebel against this system of control and live happier, more engaged lives by unplugging when they can.

With hard-hitting quotes and firsthand stories from other users, eye-opening facts, and engaging illustrations and graphic novel vignettes by Yuan Cheng, this is a book that is a must-read for any kiddo with access to the internet, social media and/or tablets and phones.

Thanks to Rocky Pond and Penguin Kids for sending us a copy!