Peer Pressure Stinks
While I totally sympathized with her torture and thought her torturers disgusting, I also felt that the book was imbalanced. She seemed too innocent and good, the kids bullying her too evil. However, I have no reason to believe her accusations were false. I don't want to give any details away but when she and her parents took a vacation and she had this amazing time with kids who were kind, considerate, and very conservative, she was just fine. I, myself, am not conservative in the least, but I believe all people should be respected as long as they respect me, too. The minute another human being says "you can't be yourself" there is trouble. Jodee respected all (she's just a naturally lovely, genuine person) and was thrown smack dab into the lion's den of your typical 10-18 year old. All this started in the 5th Grade, which makes sense since that is the beginning of middle school. I agree with her statement that "kids will be kids" is deplorable and needs to be addressed even on a national level. While I don't know for a fact, I certainly hope that at least public schools have taken some action in communication amongst it's students, particularly after Columbine. Somehow, it doesn't seem like this is the case. But Jodee herself has a website and is active in fighting against bullying and I commend her for using her negative experiences in such a postive, uplifting way. There's no doubt that these kids need some sort of safe haven and I bet she provides that for some of them.
I think the culprit is two fold: some of these schools are simply too big and how can the adults police an area so big? Seriously: if the school campus is 1-2 miles long unless there is an adult standing at every corner don't these kids feel like they can get away with anything? And they do. Secondly: this is todays society. Her book takes place in the 80's and since then I believe things have gotten worse with regard to peer pressure, not better. And all these Hollywood movies about the cliques. I graduated from High School in 1977. It was a small little New England town school and even we had all those cliques. I, being an artist and a very sensitive person, just like Jodee, often stood up for the underdog, but kids did not threaten to hurt me, nor did they hurt me. They just ignored me. However, I had my "group" of kids so I wasn't as gut wrenchingly lonely as she was. But my times were more innocent and my school tiny compared to the massive structures she attended. In some ways we thought we were offering our children a better place to get educated by building these huge school complexes, but really we were creating a maze for adolense to run wild in.
I think this book would be perfect for required reading for 8th - 12th grade. It might change some lives. And I also love that Jodee got the last laugh by being so successful and exposing her torturers. The best part of the book is when she attends her High School Reunion 20 years later!! Read it and find out what happens as she stands in front of these kids that did her so much harm so long ago.