By: David Elzey,
on 4/25/2012
by Gregory Rogers Allen & Unwin, Austrailia 2009 Roaring Brook, US 2012 The Boy, who previously met the Bard and the Bear and battled a Midsummer Knight, takes "readers" on another adventure, this time through the world of Vermeer. The Boy, out titular hero, is kicking around when a soccer ball appears. One swift kick and the ball lands in a fountain, and the bully boys who were previously
By: Becky Laney,
on 4/18/2012
A to Z Challenge Day 7: G . 4.75 Stars Gimme Jimmy had no friends, which was probably good since Jimmy wasn’t a good friend himself. His favorite word was gimme, as in Gimme my toys, and Gimme my books. Jimmy was also a bully. He took things from little girls at school and [...]
By: Robin Brande,
on 2/21/2012
Those of you who know my work know I normally write young adult fiction. But I’ve been wanting to…
I was asked to write a poem about bullies. I didn't want write something with a sitcom ending where there was a 'happily ever after' finish. It's a tough subject matter and needs to be dealt with in an honest way.
Now, I am NOT a poet. I looked at a Shel Silverstein poem for the 'format'. I never would have come up with this rhyming sequence. I am hoping it's okay. It seems like a great way to have a framework to use as a model.
I started this yesterday afternoon and finished it a few hours later. Again, having a poem to look at for the format was really helpful.
I never would have tackled the subject matter of bulling without having been asked to. Having been able to come up with something so quickly, I'm thinking it's a great exercise. Pick a topic and write something. And, if you need to, look at an existing poem for a structure to follow. Try it! How about, 'bullies'?
The Big Bully Boy
You know the big bully boy
In my class named Roy?
Well, he thinks I am his personal toy
He twists both my wrists
And he calls me a goose
With his garlic-ee breath
Roy smells like a moose
He’s making me nervous
He’s drinking my drink
He’s eating my snack
He says that I stink
When the clock strikes three
I am safe, I am free
I hope and I pray
That he moves far away
You know, the big bully boy
In my class named Roy
© Barney Saltzberg 2011
Emily Jenkins. Invisible Inkling. Illus. Harry Bliss. Balzer + Bray – HarperCollins, 2011. Hank Wolowitz knows he has “an overbusy imagination,” but the creature stealing ice cream cones from his parents’ shop and hanging out in Hank’s laundry basket is not imaginary—he’s invisible. Inkling is an invisible bandapat, an endangered species from the Peruvian Woods [...]
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By: Tara Michener ,
on 5/17/2011
Hi Readers,
Have you ever thought about the power of language? When we decide to greet someone and ask them about their day-we can make them feel special and cared for. When we say mean, careless comments we can make them feel as if they don't matter. When I was young someone told me that words do not have the power to hurt-they are just words. I don't agree.
When the civil rights workers fought for freedom and had racial slurs painted on their homes-those words hurt. When it is some one's birthday and they get a card that tells them they are great-those words help. My goal is to help spread the word (no pun intended) about self-esteem, diversity and literacy. I do this through my books, events and projects. So before you speak-try this exercise first. Ask yourself is this helpful or hurtful? If it could go either way refrain from saying it. Let's build up this world with our words.
-Read something great.
By: Tara Michener ,
on 5/10/2011
If you are free this Friday-I'd like to welcome you to join us at our Professionals Against Bullying Roundtable hosted by the Friendship Circle. We will have a presentation, dialogue session and time to network and talk to others about this issue that effects our communities. We are meeting at 6 p.m. and it will run until 8 p.m. All ages are welcome to join us.
If you can't make this please try and come to Much Ado About Bullying: Signs, Symptoms and Solutions on Sunday May 15 from 1-6 p.m. at the Holocaust Memorial Center in Farmington Hills. I will be one of the speakers and will be joined by Dr. Elizabeth Barton and Glenn Stutzky. Bullying is not just teasing and joking it is an act that is being amplified by our global media capabilities and hurting the quality of life and self-esteem of people of all ages. We have some great ideas and events on the horizon that I promise to keep you up to date on.
-Read something great!
By: Carmela Martino and 5 other authors,
on 5/6/2011
Roxie and her pals sat in my "possibilities" file while I wrote and sold two more picture books, and researched my next novel. I kept thinking of one of my first editors who told me "There's a story in there somewhere." She was referring to Yankee Girl, which, at that point, I had been writing for over three years. I knew there was a story in Camp K-9. . . somewhere.
I would like to say that I had one big "Aha!" moment and found that story.
I didn't. Instead, I had a lot of little "Oh" moments.
One "oh"came when I realized that most of my camping experience had been as a counselor. I was fourteen when I had my only experience as a camper. I thought of Roxie as an eight-year-old in "people
years." Most of my personal camp memories would have to go.
Great. My manuscript was vanishing, not growing.
Another "oh" moment came while stuck in Atlanta traffic, which happens at least once a day. I was
planning a writing exercise for one of young writers' day camps. I decided I would have them write about their most precious possession. I needed to give them an example of something or someone you are deeply attached to. I didn't want a lot of essays on X-Boxes or their latest birthday present. What had been my most precious possession?
From nowhere (because I wasn't thinking all that hard) I thought "my quilt." When I was born, my Grandmother Rodman made me a quilt from corduroy remnants. It was the size of a twin bed coverlet. I wasn't as bad as Linus and his blankie, but I dragged "the Quilt"everywhere. I called it "Meemaw's Quilt" after it's creator. After I started school, the Quilt left the house only for road trips and sleepovers. Since everyone took bedrolls to sleepovers (in the days before pink My Little Pony sleeping bags) no one ever noticed the quilt.
I had taken it to that 8th grade camp, rubbing on particular corner, worn velvet soft, comforting myself to sleep.
I had just enough time to scribble "M'maws quilt" on a Wal-Mart receipt before the traffic on Georgia 400 once again took off like the Indie 500.
I was actively thinking about Roxie as I was taking the MARTA train to the airport one day. Specifically, the conflict between Roxie and Lacy. Lacy was a bigger dog. Would that be enough to make her so disagreeable? Would it be enough for Roxie to fear her?
The answer; no. What if Roxie had a secret she didn't want anyone to know, especially not Lacy?
I heard the voice of one of the many superstar writers I had listened to over the years. I don't remember who it was, but the voice said "It isn't enough to get your character into a jam. You have to put them in as much peril as you can without killing them. And remember, they have to figure it out for themselves. No fairy godmothers, no magic genii's coming to the rescue."
Now the voice didn't say that the Situation (not the one from Jersey Shore) must be life-or-death. The character didn't have to be tied to the train tracks with a locomotive roaring in her direction. "You find the worst thing to happen to your character. It might not be life-or-death for you, the reader, but you must understand how perilous this is for him/her."
Not an "aha" moment...just another question I couldn't answer. I scrawled "life or death for Roxie" on a Walgreens receipt before I was shoved out by the crowd at the Airport Station.
That night I was in an unfamiliar city, trying to sleep in an unfamiliar bed. I always fret over these presentations, no matter how many times I have done them before. A good bed helps. I recall with fondness a room in Miami with one of those cloud-like coverlets and a pillow t
Invisible Inkling by Emily Jenkins Hank Wolowitz, please call him Wolowitz, lives with his sister and parents in an apartment above their Brooklyn ice cream shop called the “Big Round Pumpkin: Ice Cream for a Happy World.” His best friend Wainscotting has moved to Iowa City leaving Wolowitz feeling alone. It doesn’t help that Wolowitz [...]
By: Tara Michener ,
on 11/4/2010
Educators: Mentors or Bullies?
We have been discussing over the last month about students being bullied or the one who does the bullying. Recently, I have had an encounter with a professor and it was not a good one. I was insulted and bullied through e-mail. She tore me down and accused me of things that were not true and she passed this along to other professor that I admire and look up to and this really got to me. I have been working so hard and in a matter of one e-mail she made me look incompetent. That being said after all the professors saw her e-mail, this event I was throwing was canceled. I had a complete melt down. This came out of no-where and I could not figure out what to say to her. I also could not believe that she was such a mean bully. At that moment I felt defeated. Once I got it together and got some advice from an amazing mentor, this incident reminded me of something that happened to my brother as a child and it made me wonder; are the kids really the ones to blame for being bullies or are they acting out what they see in the classroom?
Teachers are supposed to be an important figure in a child’s life. Besides the children’s own parents teachers see their students for six hours or more a day. Teachers are to be mentors not bullies. They are supposed to help children find their skill and to develop it, not tear it down. Teachers are supposed to pick a child up if they fall down. Teachers are supposed to stop bullying if they see it happening. Are they the real bullies and is this why teachers have not put a stop to bullying in the past? Many admit to seeing the bullying occur in the hallways but do nothing to stop it, is this because they started it? What happens when that trusted mentor turns out to be the bully; the instigator. Children act out what they see and hear every day.
When my brother was in third grade he had a teacher who was a bully to him. She was so bad that she got the whole class to pick on him. I remember him coming home one day crying because during story time he raised his hand to ask a question about the story and when he asked the teacher in front of the class called him stupid. He said after that the kids started laughing and called him stupid all day long. He even said on recess one of the kids pushed him outside and not one teacher stopped this boy from harassing my brother. Every day my brother dreaded going to school knowing what was to come. He said it did not matter if he did anything because she found something to yell at him about everyday and that it was always in front of the class. This teacher was such a bully that she even began talking to other teachers about my brother saying that he was uncontrollable. My brother is smart and he would get done with the work before all the other kids so he would get restless and this teacher never gave him anything more to do. She would wait for him to do something so she could pick on him in front of the class.
It got so bad at one point of the year that my mom and dad went in to a meeting with her. The principal, and this counselor and they told my parents that my brother had ADD and needed to be medicated. My mom said no but just to make sure she took him to the doctor. The doctor examined my brother and told my mom he did not need medication. He said he is sitting in this room calmly and listening to us, he is fine. This was a relief to my mother but this also showed her that these adult figures were not going to challenge my brother’s creative mind. They were going to keep on bullying him. It was shortly after this doctor visit that my parents decided to move my brother up a grade because this teacher was still singling him out. This was the best decision made for my brother. He still got teased shortly after moving up a grade but he soon made a good friend that he still has in his life today.
In the end, where is bullying stemming from, the students or the mentors in our school system. Are we paying these professors/teachers to be bullies? The answ
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By: Writing for Children,
on 9/9/2010
Reviewed by Margarett Jones
Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns about Bullies is a cute story about being bullied and what you should do if you are bullied or if you see someone else who is. The pictures are bold and the characters are well chosen.
Wigglebottom is a perfect name for this wiggly exuberant rabbit. Nicely illustrated by: Susan F. Cornelison
The best part of the book to me (besides the message for children) is the tips for teachers and other grown ups that offered safe ways to encourage children to report bullies. I think children know bullying should be reported, but they are scared to do so. This book is a wonderful way to help children and adults both do what they should do about bullies.
I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to every parent and teacher. The additional 2 pages at the end, were a wonderful bonus. With suggestions for how to help a child stay safe and report bullies. Howard Binkow’s website at www.wedolisten.com is fantastic. Check it out and I am sure you will agree!
Title: Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns About Bullies
Author: Howard Binkow
Illustrator: Susan F. Cornelison
Reading level: Ages 4-8
Hardcover: 32 pages
Publisher: Thunderbolt Publishing in Association with the We Do Listen Foundation; First edition (October 1, 2008)
ISBN-10: 0971539030
ISBN-13: 978-0971539037
By: Melissa Ackerman,
on 8/25/2010
It is that time of year again. Characterized by those three little words that bring so much anticipation on the parts of parents and schoolchildren. Back. To. School.
As another school year begins, we think it is important to address the growing issue of bullying. And so, today we are talking with author Ouisie Shapiro and photographer Steven Vote of Bullying and Me: Schoolyard Stories. This nonfiction book tells the real-life stories of elementary and middle school children who have been bullied or were once a bully themselves. The poignant narratives illustrate the negative effects of bullying another child as well as what kids, parents, and educators can do to stop the cycle. Click below to listen to Ouisie and Steven discuss their experiences interviewing students, their own experiences with bullying, and their plans for extending this theme in future projects. (RT: 8:58)
Ouisie Shapiro is the author, most recently, of Bulling and Me: Schoolyard Stories. Her first book with Albert Whitman, Autism & Me: Sibling Stories, was published in 2009. Ouisie is also co-author of Batter Up: Baseball Activities for Kids of all Ages. In addition to books, Ouisie has been writing for television for many years and has won three Emmy awards for documentaries on sports figures.
Steven Vote is an award-winning Australian photographer and filmmaker who divides his time between New York City and Western Massachusetts. In addition to his acclaimed work in advertising, editorial, corporate and travel photography; Steven has a special interest in telling visual stories – photographing his subjects in their world. His work has been featured in American Photo, PDN, Popular Photography, Applied Arts and singled out by Graphis Photo Annual for exceptional imagery.
For more information and resources on dealing with bullying, check out:
http://www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/kids/ - Health and Human Services
http://kidshealth.org/teen/school_jobs/bullying/bullies.html – Teen Health
http://aacap.org/page.w
Are you a monster, a mouse, or yourself?
This is the question that author, Dr. Pat Palmer, asks in ‘The Monster, the Mouse and Me,’ a unique and wonderful approach to teaching children how to be assertive.
This book is written for ages 8 and up. Its relaxed font and simple drawings help your child feel at ease and ready to learn the difference between a bully (monster) or acting more timid (mouse).
This book has many self-help exercises that are designed for group and self-reflection. The exercises are specifically designed to help your child identify the differences in character and demonstrate the proper and acceptable behaviour we all need to possess.
I would highly recommend, The Mouse the Monster and Me, to any family. I wish this book would have been around when I was growing up – wonderful.
Visit Uplift Press at; http://www.upliftpress.com/
About the Author;
Dr. Pat Palmer, author of many books for children, teens, and adults, offers compassionate, positive ways to handle and express feelings, be assertive, and be confident. A therapist and former Director of Assertiveness Training Institute in Denver, she continues to write at her home in Hawaii.
By: David Elzey,
on 5/6/2010
(without getting your head flushed) and Deal with an Ex-Best Friend, ... um, Girls, and a Heartbreaking Hamster by Donna Gephart Peachtree Press / Random House 2010 I think the only thing the title doesn't include is the main character's love of Jon Stewart, and perhaps the fact that he isn't legally old enough to have a YouTube account... David Greenberg is a bit of a nebbish who wants so
By: Roger Sutton,
on 2/13/2010
. . . oops, don't want to have to make like Sylvester and use my magic pebble to hide from the boys in blue. But I am going to California next week and will be giving two presentations to which you are all invited. Both are free.
The first is on Thursday, February 18th, where I'll be at Pomona College in Claremont, speaking on "Children's Literature and Adults: Where do we get off?" It's at 4:15 PM, Ena Thompson Room, Crookshank Hall. I hear there will be snacks.
On Friday the 19th, I'll be speaking at my alma mater Pitzer College, also in Claremont, with fellow alum Susan Patron on "What Makes a Good Banned Book?: How Children's Literature Gets Into Trouble." That will be from 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM, reception to follow, Broad Performance Space. Those with testicular fortitude are welcome to join us.
By: Becky Laney,
on 1/31/2010
Under the Dome by Stephen King. 2009. [November 2009]. Simon & Schuster. 1088 pages.
From two thousand feet, where Claudette Sanders was taking a flying lesson, the town of Chester's Mill gleamed in the morning light like something freshly made and just set down.
How many books can you think of that make you thankful--really thankful--for fresh air, for oxygen?
Stephen King's Under the Dome is quite a book. At over a thousand pages, it has plenty of drama to offer readers. King's message that absolute power corrupts absolutely is well played out in its pages. As readers meet some really dirty, really corrupt, downright evil politicians.
The book begins by introducing us to Dale Barbara, one of the heroes--one of the good guys; he is on his way out of town. After having one too many confrontations with "Junior" the son of the most evil politician (who just happens to be a used car salesman too) in town, Barbie has decided he's had enough. It's time to move on. And quickly. But. He never makes it out of town. Something stops him. The dome. On the day the dome appears (October 21), life changes dramatically and drastically. The dome isolates this little town. No one can get in or out. In fact, nothing can get in or out. Not water. Not wind. Not rain. Not air. (Not much air at any rate.)
What's to keep the residents from panicking? Not much! Especially with Jim Rennie in charge. In fact, he thinks Dome Day is just about the best thing that ever happened to him. Suddenly, he's the guy in charge. There is no one to stop him. He can implement anything in the name of "doing good for the city" and who can challenge his authority? The fact that the President of the United States has chosen Dale Barbara to take command? Not gonna stop Big Jim! It's just one more reason why Barbie (or Baaarbie needs to be taken care of). And Barbie knows it. As do his friends.
How long can a community stay a community? How long before residents start turning on one another? How long before they become "us" and "them"? How long before the mob mentality takes over completely? Will any one be safe under the dome?
I imagine it has enough appeal for readers of horror and readers of science fiction. Is it for everyone? No. I don't think a book has to be for everyone. This one has plenty of horrific details. The language. The graphic nature of death and violence and sex and drug use. It's going to turn some readers off. Also this one could definitely be offensive to those who are religious. King's depiction of Christianity is abrasive, harsh. (No question about that!) What I wasn't expecting exactly in this very dark, very horrific book is the humor. (Though it was often a dark sense of humor.) Like this description of a trucker colliding with the Dome:
The trucker might have been overloaded and moving too fast, Barbie thought, but at least he was getting a Viking funeral. (41)Or this one of an unlucky farmer:
On God Creek Road, Bob Roux had been digging potatoes. He came in for lunch (more commonly known as "dinnah" in those parts), sitting astride his old Deere tractor and listening to his brand new iPod, a gift from his wife on what would prove to be his final birthday. His house was only half a mile from the field he'd been digging, but unfortunately for him, the field was in Motton and the house was in Chester's Mill. He struck the barrier at fifteen miles an h1 Comments on Under the Dome, last added: 2/1/2010Display Comments Add a Comment
By: Becky Laney,
on 11/24/2009
Preller, James. 2009. Bystander. Feiwel and Friends. 226 pages.
The first time Eric Hayes ever saw him, David Hallenback was running, if you could call it that, running in a halting, choppy-stepped, stumpy-legged shamble, slowing down to look back over his shoulder, stumbling forward, pausing to catch his breath, then lurching forward again.
Bystander is a book about bullying. Eric, our narrator, fits strangely into his new school. New and slightly confused, he begins associating with the wrong crowd. Kids he knows to be bullies. Because--at least at first--he's not the target of the bullying, he accepts everything. There are a few instances here and there that make him squirm. But at the same time, it's easy to laugh along with the other kids, the other witnesses or bystanders. As long as the bullying isn't too much--then he's not willing to speak up about it. But there comes a time when it does get to be too much. When what he witnesses makes him so uncomfortable that he wakes up and gets a conscience. But now that he doesn't want to be all buddy-buddy with his former friends, will he become the next target? Will standing up for what he knows to be right lead to his own fall? And can he live with that if it is?
What's a boy to do when so many of the kids around him are bullies? True, not everyone bullies with kicks and punches, but there are so many different ways of bullying. Why does everyone have to be so mean in middle school?
This is more of a message-oriented novel.
© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
By: Becky Laney,
on 10/28/2009
Logsted, Greg. 2009. Alibi Junior High. Simon & Schuster. 244 pages.
I hate airports. I've been in airports all over the world, but they're basically all the same. Places of painful partings and awkward greetings.
Our hero, Cody Saron, is new to town. His father, an agent for the CIA, has left him in the care of his aunt, Jenny, and for the first time, he'll be attending a real school. He knows plenty of stuff--very smart, very observant--but he doesn't know the basics even of how to survive in junior high. How to interact with kids--both sexes--his own age. How to attend classes without getting in trouble with the teachers and coaches. Whose fault is that? Does Cody have an attitude problem? Or are the teachers seeing what they want to see? The book is from his opinion, and from his perspective at least plenty of the teachers (and principal) are jerks, they just have it in for him no matter what. (It was weird how I was getting the Speak-vibe from this one. The two have little in common. At least on the surface.) Can Cody survive his first year of junior high?
Did I like this one? Mostly. It was enjoyable. A quick and easy read for sure.
© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
By: Becky Laney,
on 10/22/2009
Tarshis, Lauren. 2007. Emma Jean Lazarus Fell Out of A Tree. Penguin. 200 pages.
Emma Jean Lazarus knew very well that a few of the seventh grade girls at William Gladstone Middle School were criers. They cried if they got a 67 on an algebra test or if they dropped their retainer into the trash in the cafeteria. They cried if their clay mug exploded in the kiln and when they couldn't finish the mile in gym. Two even cried in science, when Mr. Petrowski announced it was time to dissect a sheep's eyeball. Of course Emma-Jean had no intention of participating in such a barbaric and unhygienic activity. But crying was not a logical way to express one's opposition to the seventh-grade science curriculum.
By: Becky Laney,
on 10/17/2009
Levine, Kristin. 2009. Best Bad Luck I Ever Had. Penguin. 264 pages.
I've been wrong before. Oh, heck, if I'm being real honest, I've been wrong a lot. But I ain't never been so wrong as I was about Emma Walker. When she first came to town, I thought she was the worst piece of bad luck I'd had since falling in the outhouse on my birthday. I tell you, things were fine in Moundville before Emma got here, least I thought they were. Guess the truth is, you'll never know how wrong I was till I'm done telling and explaining--so I'd better just get on with the story.
I'll be honest from the start. I love, love, love this book. I do. I mean this is one oh-so-good, oh-so-magical, practically-perfect-in-every way type of book. But that's my opinion.
Our narrator, Harry Otis Sims (aka "Dit") had me at hello. His oh-so-southern voice won me over. I guess maybe this won't appeal to everyone. I mean some people love Southern fiction--books set in the Deep South--and others don't. (This one is set in Alabama.) This one is also historical fiction. So there's that as well.
The year is 1917. (The novel does go into 1918 as well. In fact we see the influenza epidemic come into the story. Winnie's War is set around this same time only in Texas.)
Dit is your typical boy. He's more interested in fishing and playing baseball than almost anything else. And he really wants--more than anything--to have a best friend his own age who shares his interests. That is one reason why he's excited the town is getting a new postmaster. He's hoping he'll have a family, a son, just the right age.
Emma. She's a girl. (Obviously.) And she is colored. (That's the word they use in the book, for the most part.) The Walker family has just moved from Boston. (The postal service has transferred him. He'll be here a year at least.)
What's this small community to make of this new family? What's poor Dit to think of this new girl? Can the two ever be friends? And what would that friendship look like?
I loved Emma. I mean I love, love, loved Emma. I loved how smart she was. I loved her bookishness. I loved how her love of books baffled young Dit. How he just couldn't understand how awesome reading is. I don't want to go into all the details, but I just thought this story had it all.
The characters. The dialogue. The story. Everything just right. Well, almost. I still think the cover could have been better. It's not that the flying bird doesn't work thematically. It's just that it doesn't scream read me, read me. What do you think? Based on the cover alone, would you pick it up?
Other reviews: TV and Book Addict, Semicolon, Book Bits, Patchwork of Books, Musings of a Book Addict.
© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
By: jeff,
on 8/21/2009
The newest addition to our Fun Stuff page is here! We are calling the section “WordPlay,” because we aren’t sure whether or not we’re allowed to use the phrase that rhymes with “bad dibs” for copyright reasons. For those of you who are still scratching their heads, the games work like this: certain words have been replaced in a story with a blank space. The reader is prompted to insert a random verb or noun in its place with often hilarious results.
The first story we’re offering is called ”Sammy and the Bullies“. Here’s how my first round went:
…
By: Becky Laney,
on 8/8/2009
Cammuso, Frank. 2009. Knights of the Lunch Table: The Dragon Players. Scholastic. 127 pages. (September 2009)
This graphic novel is the second in a series. (I haven't read the first one in the series, Knights of the Lunch Table: The Dodgeball Chronicles. But I found it didn't matter. I was able to pick this one up and read it as a stand alone without any confusion.) Artie King is a young boy attending Camelot Middle School. The school is preparing for a big day, Dragon Day. Many activities are in the works. And readers get to see the whole thing come together. (There are several story lines going on.) The big focus of this one is the robot competition. Artie King--whether he likes it or not--has signed on to compete. He and his friends must build a robot. Then come Saturday--Dragon day--that robot will have to battle it out with other robots. Artie's big temptation is whether or not he should just do the best he can do, or if he should try to cheat.
© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
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By: Shutta Crum,
on 7/8/2009
Congratulations to my friend Jacqui Robbins who was feted and cheered by an audience of cupcake smeared admirers. (The cupcakes were good!) But her second book, TWO OF A KIND (Illustrated by Matt Phelan. Published by Atheneum/Richard Jackson Books, 2009), is even better than bright blue and green cupcakes! It has just taken its first steps out into the world, and what a sensitive and honest book it is!
Jacqui has just the right touch and is in tune with the tragedies of life in early elementary school. Join me in welcoming this new book. (Click on the photo in the sidebar, to be taken to an independent bookstore where you may order Jacqui’s book.) In addition, check out her funny blog at: http://jacquirobbins.blogspot.com .
And in case you missed it . . . here is Jacqui’s first book, THE NEW GIRL . . . AND ME. You teachers, listen up! Jacqui’s books are spot-on for use in the early elementary classroom. She handles the problems of bullies, and new students with a knowing touch.
Enjoy!
Shutta
Actually, when I read the quick synopsis, I freaked out. I was like "Oh, no! Someone wrote my story already," but then I went on read more and was like "oh, that's okay. That's been done before."
It sounds like a good read and I'd pick up it, except if the ending is bad like you said. Then I'd stay far away. Right now, I'm maybe/maybe not.
Actually, when I read the quick synopsis, I freaked out. I was like "Oh, no! Someone wrote my story already," but then I went on read more and was like "oh, that's okay. That's been done before."
It sounds like a good read and I'd pick up it, except if the ending is bad like you said. Then I'd stay far away. Right now, I'm maybe/maybe not.
I was oddly intrigued, but found this really unbelievable. Won't be buying it for middle school.