Scurlock, Fenley. Down to Business: 51 Industry Leaders Share Practical Advice on How to Become a Young Entrepreneur. Addl. Creators Jason Liaw. Random House, 03/2024. 416pp. Nonfiction. Trade $19.99. 978-0-593-65159-9. PLB $22.99. 978-0-593-65160-5. GRADES 5–10. HIGH ADDITIONAL.
Two fifteen-year-old friends and award-winning entrepreneurs interview fifty-one diverse innovators, executives, and inventors. Organized into seven leadership styles, from disruptor to champion, and searchable by industry, the brief targeted interviews reveal varied insights into what it takes to create a career that inspires you. This is not a book to read cover to cover, nor is it a practical manual to follow. Readers are best served dipping in: selecting backgrounds, businesses, or attitudes that resonate with them and using the inspiration as a jumping off point to dream and plan. The multitude of diverse ages and perspectives effectively busts the myth that there is any one criteria, or path, to being successful, but the brevity of each exchange leaves a substantial gap from the reader’s here to the entrepreneur’s there. Back matter includes relevant camps, programs fairs, competitions, and four aspirational books, three of which are dated. Scurlock appears white and Liaw is Asian American. The youthful perspective of the authors and the paucity of business nonfiction in most library collections up the value of this encouraging survey. Reviewed from an ARC.
Melissa McAvoy—Retired