Revealing her long quest for self-esteem, the author explains what self-esteem is, how crippling a lack of it can be, and how recapturing it can transform our lives. Self-esteem, she believes, is our natural state, a basic human value. But too many of us lose our sense of self-worth early on. Girls are especially vulnerable, often turning from free spirits into female impersonators by adolescence. The author tells how, by returning to her childhood self through techniques such as imagery, guided meditation and artistic expression, she has rediscovered the strong, secure person each of us was born to be. She affirms that anyone can heal the inner child of the past through these and other means, and inspires us with descriptions of people who came to know how valuable they are. Other work by the author includes Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions and Marilyn.