Common Sense Media Review
By Andrea Beach
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Funny YouTube advice satire has some edgy sexual references.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 14+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
Through satire, irony, and comic exaggeration, actress/comedian Colleen Ballinger's YouTube persona Miranda Sings points out the inanity, frivolity, and downright ridiculously unrealistic "advice" that seems to be everywhere on social media. SELP-HELF topics include health and beauty, fashion, career, romance, finances, and more.
Is It Any Good?
Fans of her Miranda Sings YouTube channel will love this colorfully absurd satire of the self-help industry. Those who don't already know Miranda may find themselves scratching their heads over the child-like font, photo collages that look like poor cutouts badly taped together, and misuse -- especially with spelling -- of words. Older teens can be encouraged to think about how Colleen Ballinger, the actress and comedian who created the Miranda persona, uses satire, irony, and exaggeration and how those techniques affect the real message conveyed.
Miranda's kind of an unpleasant character, and her appearance is deliberately off-putting. What looks at first glance like an exercise in self-aggrandizement effectively points out, when taken as a whole, the overabundance and lack of reality in the how-to, DIY, life-hacks, fashion/beauty, career, and romance advice so pervasive on social media.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about why Miranda Sings is, or isn't, funny. Did you know she's a fictional persona? Why do you think the actress invented a character like Miranda?
Have you ever tried to follow self-help or DIY videos or books? Did it work like you expected? Did anything go wrong?
Did you use any of the QR codes to see special videos for the book? Why do you think those codes are in there? Did you go right back to the book, or did you end up online for a while after viewing the videos?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Humor
- Topics : Arts
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Gallery Books
- Publication date : July 21, 2015
- Number of pages : 240
- Available on : Nook, Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : September 30, 2025
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate