The Book Chook

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Children’s Book Review, Being Jack
Posted: 18 Nov 2014 10:00 AM PST

Reviewed by Susan Stephenson, www.thebookchook.com

Being Jack was written by Susanne Gervay, illustrated by Cathy Wilcox, and published by Harper Collins Australia, 2014.

From the publisher:

Jack is in Year 6 now and still loves his photography, surfing, and crazy family. Things are going well for him, particularly at school where he isn’t bullied any more. But he notices that his best friend Christopher is being taunted and is starting to miss school and hiding out and avoiding everyone. And when a football match turns ugly and Jack and Christopher witness some unfair dirty play, they know that, again, the bullying has to stop. Ages: 9+.

I very much enjoyed the earlier Jack books: I am Jack, Super Jack and Always Jack. I also adored Monkey Baa Theatre’s performance of I am Jack. Being Jack, the final book in the series, sees our hero Jack at almost 13, an immensely likeable and believable character. I think that’s one of the reasons kids relate so well to the Jack books – they can see themselves in Jack. His life is like theirs. He interacts with good friends, kids at school, teachers, and relatives. Jack loves his family but is often flabbergasted by their behaviour and their idiosyncrasies.

Gervay knows how to make kids laugh, and humour there is, as well as drama and lots of moments for kids to think about and discuss. We see inside Jack’s head and feel what he feels. The present tense makes everything immediate, often almost like a stream of consciousness as Jack is bewildered by chaotic thoughts and real problems. How can he best help his mate, Christopher? Should he try to find and contact his real dad? How will that impact those he loves?

The illustrations by Cathy Wilcox are minimal because this is a novel. But the little black and white sketches add a real charm to the story, and may help younger readers not to be daunted by the amount of text. I hope so, because this, like all the Jack books, is such a great read!

In Being Jack, Gervay challenges us to think about bullying in all its forms. No longer tortured by bullies as he was in I am Jack, nevertheless, Jack has hard decisions to make about being a witness to bullying. For children, for all of us, these are important issues to think about, making Being Jack not just a book kids will very much enjoy, but one that nudges them towards taking responsibility for their own actions.

 

The post “Gervay challenges us to think about bullying in all its forms” – Review appeared first on Susanne Gervay's Blog.

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Celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi today with Saffron Tree, who highlights two “lovely stories” wrapped in one book – The Story Lady by Shruthi Rao and Blanket of Stars by Rachna Chhabria.

The Sambat Trust has recently launched its seventh library in the Philippines – many congratulations.  There are some photos of very happy children…

Author Mitali Perkins has announced the winner of her 10th Teens Between Cultures Prose competition; and in case you missed it, here’s the link to the Poetry Competition winner too – definitely take the time to read these winning entries.

Cynsations has an interview with Debbie Ridpath Ohi  (whom we welcomed to the PaperTigers Gallery in August) – and there’s also a giveaway of Debbie’s just-released I’m Bored with a hand-drawn doodle… Quick!  There are only four days left…!

And I learned something new from The Book Chook – I, who love elephants so, how come I never knew 22 September is Elephant Appreciation Day?! – phew – thank you, Book Chook.  She has lots of elephant activities on her post.  So what’s your favorite elephant book?

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It may still be Day 1 here in the Western Hemisphere, but it's already Day 2 in Australia, where Susan Stephenson (the Book Chook) lives, so ...

Welcome to Day 2 of Share a Story ~ Shape a Future. If you're just joining us, then double welcome! We're glad you've found us and can't wait to hear your stories and ideas. (image credit: It Takes a Village logo created by Susan Stephenson at ToonDoo.com)

When we started brainstorming about the idea of a literacy blog tour way back in the Aughts (08 to be exact), we knew early on that we wanted to create a venue that showed how reading is relevant to a child's development, but also to offer literacy ideas in ways that were accessible to everyone.

Well, today's host, Susan Stephenson of The Book Chook, has taken that idea to a whole new level (and another continent)! She and her guests are talking about everything from "low-tech" storytelling and singing to letting kids create stop-motion videos. So let's get started ...

We hear stories before we read them, so it only seems natural that Susan opens the day with a pair of interviews with storytellers. Join her for her chats with Francie Dillon and Helen Evans at the Book Chook. Then *hear* some more stories ...

• At Saints and Spinners, Farida Dowler shares ideas for Stories in the Bathtub.
• At Dulemba.com, illustrator Elizabeth Dulemba talks about the future of reading in an article called Beyond the Printed Page.
• Last November, Rebecca Taylor talked about sharing family stories and Family Stories Month at Lost in Books.
• Franki Sibberson talks about digital storytelling in a pair of posts at A Year of Reading. First up, her February post Discovering the Possibilities of Stopmotion in Grades 2-5. She also talks about making Tricky Videos with Klutz.
• Dawn Morris helps us understand that literacy is more than just reading and writing. Head over to Moms Inspire Learning for the Circles of Literacy
• At Chatel Village, Kim Chatel shares more about Storytelling in a Multimedia World.

Sometimes we have to be a little creative when it comes to getting kids interested in activities related to reading. If you're looking for ways to sneak in some literacy ...

• Join Joyce Grant at Getting Kids Reading to get ideas on ways to Get Active Kids Reading.
• Pull out all stops. Amy Mascott shares some of her tips for getting a little sneaky at Teach Mama.
• Think pictures. Rebecca Taylor talks about Combining Art with Liter
  1 Comments on Share a Story 2010 Day 2: Literacy My Way, Literacy Your Way, last added: 3/9/2010
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  Tif said, on 3/9/2010 9:50:00 PM
  

  Wow!!! I finally finished going through all of these great links and that is all I can say!! There is so much good stuff here that I have no idea where to even start!! Thank you!!
  
  Once again, here is a post with my thoughts . . . http://www.tiftalksbooks.com/2010/03/share-story-shape-future-day-2-literacy.html

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