Channel Kindness: Stories of Kindness and Community

A New York Times Bestseller

For Lady Gaga, kindness is the driving force behind everything she says and does.

The quiet power of kindness can change the way we view one another, our communities, and even ourselves. She embodies this mission, and through her work, brings more kindness into our world every single day.

Lady Gaga has always believed in the importance of being yourself, being kind to yourself, and being kind to others, no matter who they are or where they come from. With that sentiment in mind, she and her mother, Cynthia Germanotta, founded Born This Way Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to making the world a kinder and braver place. Through the years, they've collected stories of kindness, bravery and resilience from young people all over the world, proving that kindness truly is the universal language. And now, we invite you to read these stories and follow along as each and every young author finds their voice just as Lady Gaga has found hers.

Within these pages, you'll meet young changemakers who found their inner strength, who prevailed in the face of bullies, who started their own social movements, who decided to break through the mental health stigma and share how they felt, who created safe spaces for LGBTQ+ youth, and who have embraced kindness with every fiber of their being by helping others without the expectation of anything in return.

In one story, you'll read about a young person with an autoimmune disease, who after being bullied at school, learned how to practice self-love and started an organization with the mission of educating others about the importance of self-love, too; and in another story, you'll meet a young person who decided to start a movement to help eliminate the stigma surrounding mental health and encouraged others to talk about their feelings openly and honestly, a reminder that kindness and mental wellness go hand in hand.

Not only were we moved by these individual acts of kindness, but we were also touched by the many stories of organizations, neighborhoods, and entire communities that fully dedicated themselves to helping those in need and found new, innovative ways to make our world a kinder and braver place.

Individually and collectively, these stories prove that kindness not only saves lives but builds community. Kindness is inclusion, it is pride, it is empathy, it is compassion, it is self-respect and it is the guiding light to love. Kindness is always transformational, and its never-ending ripples result in even more kind acts that can change our lives, our communities, and our world.

Author: Born This Way Foundation Reporters, Lady Gaga
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Published: 09/22/2020
Pages: 304
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 2.15lbs
Size: 9.10h x 7.30w x 0.90d
ISBN: 9781250245588
Audience: Young Adult


Review Citation(s):
Booklist 08/01/2020 pg. 48
School Library Journal 09/01/2020 pg. 107

About the Author

Lady Gaga is an Academy Award winner, a two-time Golden Globe winner, and an eleven-time Grammy Award winner. She has amassed an outstanding 35 million global album sales, 32 billion streams, and 275 million in song consumption, making her one of the bestselling musicians of all time. She has also been a trailblazer in fashion, beauty, and philanthropy. In 2012, Lady Gaga launched Born This Way Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering youth, embracing differences, and inspiring kindness and bravery. She is also an outspoken activist, philanthropist, and supporter of many important issues including mental health issues, LGBTQ+ rights, HIV/AIDS awareness, and body image issues.

Born This Way Foundation: Led by Lady Gaga and her mother, Cynthia Germanotta, Born This Way Foundation was founded in 2012 to support the wellness of young people and empower them to create a kinder and braver world. To achieve these goals, Born This Way Foundation leverages evidence-based research and authentic partnerships in order to provide young people with kinder communities, improved connections to mental health resources, and more positive environments--online and offline.