Stand Up to Bullying!

Tomorrow is International Stand Up to Bullying Day.

I’m afraid we’re all too aware now of the widespread problem of bullying in schools and online. Not that it’s a new problem—I think most of us can recall some painful school day moments—but it’s escalated in recent years to new and more tragic degrees.

In the good old days you would just get picked on by the swing set, or on the bus ride home, but with Facebook, Myspace, Twitter and a slew of other online apps, it’s all too easy for anonymous cruelty to take place.

In This Girl is Different, Evie has been homeschooled by her free-spirited mother her whole life, but she craves an authentic high school experience. She enrolls in the local public school for her senior year, but quickly discovers that real high school is a far cry from Saved by the Bell.

Disenchanted by the injustice she sees from the teachers and administration, Evie creates an anonymous online campaign to set things straight. To her surprise, the anonymity of the internet turns her well-meaning project into something she had never imagined. Cruel accusations are made, classmates are at each other’s throats, and all anyone can agree on is that Evie is to blame. Evie must face the music—and her fellow students—and resolve this fiasco she’s created. In the end, she finds a way to clean up her mess, and to foster the open-minded dialogue she had intended all along.

This young adult novel is a great tool to address school bullying, without an overt or didactic message. Evie is a great, unusual character, and students will relate to her good intentions, and believable mistakes.

You can find out more about Evie here, and support International Stand Up to Bullying day by visiting their website here and by wearing a pink shirt on November 19^th.

Other Peachtree titles that deal with bullying are: