"Next day at school, I shove him extra hard.
Just cuz I can.
Someone sees me do it.
I end up in the office.
The principal tells me to try.
My potential ...
BLAH BLAH BLAH"
Kathryn Otoshi knows how to get to the heart of issues that bring power to the kids who read her stories. I am happy to share this book with you. It is based on a true story and dedicated to Jim Perez, an educator who lives in Southern California. Jim and his team spend countless hours working with kids 'through their bully prevention programs, gang interventions, and community building leadership services'; additionally, it is dedicated to 'the lady who kept making all those lunches for him, day after day'.
Narration by the bully offers a unique perspective for young readers. He immediately chooses as his target a young boy sitting alone in the cafeteria. Jimmy walks over, snatches that boy's lunch and walks away. By doing that, he avoids waiting in the free lunch line. Jealous that the boy likely has a better life than he does only makes the bully more aggressive. Not much changes in days that follow.
Then comes the day when the victim hands out birthday invitations to everyone in his class ... yes, to Jimmy as well. Determined not to attend in the beginning, Jimmy finally makes the decision to go. When he arrives, everyone is having cake in the kitchen. He chooses to check things out in the living room, and makes a surprising discovery. Just then, the boy's mom walks toward him. He assumes he's now in big trouble! Instead, she has a quiet question for him:
"Jimmy, what would you like for lunch tomorrow?"
She promises lunch every day from that day forward! It is not the only change in Jimmy's life.
Emotional in text and in perfectly-composed moody art, this book is sure to spark meaningful conversations at home and in classrooms.
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