Parents' Guide to How to Be a Bawse: A Guide to Conquering Life

Book Lilly Singh Advice 2017
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Common Sense Media Review

Andrea Beach By Andrea Beach , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 15+

Honest, inspiring advice from popular YouTuber.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 15+?

Any Positive Content?

Parent and Kid Reviews

age 12+

Based on 5 parent reviews

age 12+

Based on 5 kid reviews

What's the Story?

HOW TO BE A BAWSE: A GUIDE TO CONQUERING LIFE takes the lessons popular YouTuber Lilly Singh, aka !!superwoman!!, has learned from earning millions of followers on YouTube and offers examples and advice about how to apply those lessons to other areas of life. The series of essays covers a lot of ground, including bad breakups, how to be inspired, how to be the best version of yourself you can, how and when to take the first step, and more. Whether your goal is to land that big account, be more outgoing socially, or land a big recording contract, Singh shows how to give it your all, every step of the way.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say ( 5 ):
Kids say ( 5 ):

Popular YouTuber Lilly Singh's motivational advice book is refreshingly honest in the way she lays it out on the line: There are no shortcuts; put in the work. Older teens and young adults who are motivated self-starters and who already have some goals they're working toward will get a lot out of How to Be a Bawse. Colorfully illustrated, filled with wisecracks, and not sugarcoating the process, the book can be a big inspiration for goal-oriented readers of any age.

Singh takes on a lot, and the essays are surprisingly dense, so it might be best appreciated a few sections at a time. If your biggest stumbling block is that you're too shy at parties or don't speak up in meetings, for example, feel free to start with Part 3, read what's relevant, and save the rest for another time. Taken all at once it can seem like a pretty big dose of Lilly, which is understandable from someone whose livelihood and product is herself. But taken one or two steps at a time, and carefully absorbed and implemented, Singh's advice can really inspire and motivate anyone to become more confident and powerful in many situations.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the strongest messages in How to Be a Bawse. The book covers so much; is there an overall takeaway for you? If so, what?

  • What's the difference between invoking a swear word with "eff" or "BS" and using the actual word? Why do you think the author is OK with using "holy crap" but not the spelled-out "eff" word? What makes one worse than the other?

  • Why do you think so many YouTubers are writing books? Do they need the money? Do they genuinely want to help others? Why do you think Lilly Singh wrote this particular book?

Book Details

  • Author : Lilly Singh
  • Genre : Advice
  • Topics : Friendship
  • Book type : Non-Fiction
  • Publisher : Ballantine Books
  • Publication date : March 28, 2017
  • Number of pages : 336
  • Available on : Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
  • Last updated : September 30, 2025

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