Book Review: Be the Boss of Your Stuff

Allie Casazza
Thomas Nelson, 2022
160 pages

Amazon Description: Through her podcast, online courses, and first book titled Declutter Like a Mother, Allie Casazza has encouraged women to simplify and unburden their lives. Now she’s helping moms equip their kids and tweens to discover the same joy of decluttering as they

• Design and create a space that supports their interests and goals
• Make more room in their lives for playtime and creativity
• Increase productivity and find renewed focus for schoolwork
• Become conscientious consumers
• Learn valuable life skills
• Contribute to the family and household
• Cut down on cleaning time, reduce stress, and feel more peaceful

As she helps kids see that the less they own, the more time they have for what’s important, Allie breaks down each step of the decluttering process. Written in her fun, motivational voice, Be the Boss of Your Stuff

• Is ideal for boys and girls ages 8 to 12
• Includes photography and interactive activities with space to write, draw, imagine, and plan
• Is a great gift for coming-of-age celebrations, the first day of spring, New Year’s, Easter, birthdays, or school milestones

As your kids become more proactive in taking care of their stuff, you’ll find your whole family has more time and space for creativity and fun. After all, less clutter, less stress, and less chaos in your kids’ lives means more peace, more independence, and more opportunity to grow into who they’re meant to be.

This post contains affiliate links, which means I might make some extra coffee money at no extra expense to you if you buy something through one of my links. Read more about that here.

I know I’m by no means the only mom who walks into her child’s room and feels her eyes bulge and her breathing quicken. Sometimes it’s hard to walk the line between letting your children express themselves with their belongings and enabling a budding hoarder, but Be the Boss of Your Stuff can help! I was very impressed with the way Allie Casazza uses age-appropriate (but not dumbed down) language and examples to give kids reasons and methods for being better managers of their stuff. She does a great job teaching how keeping only the things you really love makes it easier to clean and use your room.

The actual physical book itself is good quality, with thick, sturdy pages and an eye-catching cover with no pesky dust jacket. The photos, illustrations, and tip boxes throughout are bright and fun, definitely styled to appeal to kids in the 8-12 age group. She also includes several pages with quizzes and spaces to write so that kids have a place to respond to some of the prompts that are intended to help them think about their space and belongings.

After reading Be the Boss of Your Stuff, I handed it to my daughter and she embraced it with surprising enthusiasm. We have given away clothes that no longer fit or suit her, and she has cleared out multiple bags of old schoolwork, used up coloring books, art, etc. that was taking up space and not useful to her. She has also selected some old toys to take to the basement, freeing up space in her room while she decides if she will miss them or if we can donate them.

All in all, I think this is a great book that I will be keeping for future reference and to give my younger daughter in a couple of years. I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants their kids to take a more objective look at how they are using their rooms, and I like the way the author defers to the parents to help with ultimate decisions about what should stay and go.