Customer Reviews

Bullies Are a Pain in the Brain (Laugh And Learn)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Recent events in our schools have shown that bullies -- aside from being a pain in the brain -- can bring out reactions from their victims that are dangerous. Teaching our children how to deal with bullies is important for parents, just as not being bullied is important to kids.

I bought this book three years ago, and read it to my then 6-year-old. The writing, and the cartoon-like pictures, made it enjoyable for him. We discussed the topic at hand -- bullies. At that age he was riding the bus to school, and was on the playground sometimes with older kids -- bullying was a concern he'd brought up often. I was concerned -- certainly I didn't want him to just turn the other cheek. I'd also noticed that sometimes his reaction to bullies was to 'out bully' them.

This book gave him some ideas on how to cope. It is a great conversation starter for parents and kids. Why do bullies bully? What else could they do? What can YOU do if bullied? What ELSE could you do? Does bullying the bully work? Why not?

A couple of weeks ago, before school began, I noticed that he'd pulled the book out and was reading up on it again.

A good book to read with your kids, and evidently one they can also read to themselves as a refresher course!

Concise, yet comprehensive. Entertaining paperback with cartoon-like illustrations. Captured my son's attention and taught me a few new things about bullies and safe strategies for dealing with them. A must read for concerned parents and kids who are tired of being pushed around.

I liked the cartoon explanations in this book, and the way the author explains that bullies are "self-esteem vampires" He goes into gang violence and what you should do about it as a child. He also goes into name-calling and general nastiness. I just wished that he would not have said that most children who are picked on, are shy children. In my experience, it is the children who are different in someway (race, religion, opinions, dress, hair color, braces etc..) that brings on the teasing. This book does not address that issue very well.

This book has been a valuable part of my classroom read aloud program for 3 years now. It is valuable in that it really speaks to the students on their level. It is straight-forward about the problems and realities of bullies and teasing. This book often provided a great springboard into valuable classroom discussions. Students become empowered to stick up for themselves and to understand the thought process of a typical bully.

I would recommend this book for any classroom library.

As an elementary principal, this book was loved by students and always checked out from the library. Trevor has a wonderful grasp on bullies and helps students in a sincere, motivating way. The dvd is super if you haven't checked into owning it. It's priced well and the animation/music is highly engaging. The material is solid and right-on with what I saw as an elementary principal and in dealing with bullying issues. If you are a teacher or can arrange author visits, go to trevorromain.com and look into a school/author visit. Trevor is inspirational for students, as well as adults, and will raise the bar for school-wide expectations with his "double-dog dare!" Trevor has visited our campus twice in two years and the students can't get enough!

Bullying can range from the insidious, verbal cruelty and exclusion which girls are notorious for to full scale violence, which occurs among both sexes.

This book is a tool of empowerment for parents, educators and anybody involved with children on any level. One thing that is VITAL to keep in mind is NEVER make light of bullies and their cruelty. That will only make the child being bullied feel that the bullying behavior is being sanctioned and that recourse is out of the question. Making excuses for bullies also compromises respect; children are hard put to feel respect for an adult who exercises such poor judgment and appears to be taken in by bullies.

Condoning bullying behavior and mouthing platitudes to the bullied, such as "can't you take a joke/s/he's only kidding/work it out for yourself/you're too sensitive" is just as harmful as the bullying behavior. Platitudes of that ilk send out a "blame the victim" message and suggest that the bullying is not a serious matter when in fact it is. Recent events and relevant studies have shown that many school shooters were bullied.

Turning the other cheek means, I believe not responding to cruelty with cruelty. Self defense is an entirely different matter. Bullies will step up their abuse if they are not kept in check. They will continue to harass their targeted victims until they get the desired response. That is why telling children to ignore bullies does not work. Bullies don't let that one work.

Trevor Romain is a genius who clearly understands a myriad of dynamics among children. His clever cartoon pictures and his question and answer section open the doors to discourse and problem solving. I like the way he encourages readers to think of what they would do if they were being bullied and also to see if they are acting as bullies towards anyone else.

An excellent book to read with children and one they are sure to come back to enjoy.

This is a book a child can read, and will gain comfort that he/she isn't alone in being bullied. I don't feel it fully addresses bullying or gives practical step - by - step advice. It doesn't provide several - step senarios. As in, if you've tried our advice and it didn't work, go on to do this next, if that doesn't work, do this next. I was hoping for a book that would address the issue comprehensively.

This book was just what my 7 year old needed. No matter what advice I tried to give her, she was still filled with anxiety. This book spoke to her and really sunk in. Last night, she was crying. Tonight, after we read the book together, she was feeling stronger, practicing what she could say back to the mean girl, and had a confident smile on her face. I ordered 3 bullying books and this was by far her favorite.

It can be toughest for parents to help kids cope with bullies and bullying in grade school, and this book particularly helped us deal with all sorts. Name-calling is probably the most common variety (indeed, even adults in public office commonly resort to this base tactic, when they lack substantive counters to valid criticism). But the potential barrage of bad behavior can also include exclusion and outright punching or worse.

This book helped our kids keep perspective during the worst of the playground battle years. Bullies can have a terrible effect, a message this book brings home in spades. It also has the potential to help not only the victims of bullying, but also those children so insecure that they become bullies to aggrandize their own weak self-images.

The end result is more respect for kids at both ends of the bully spectrum. this book helps teach children how to behave respectfully, and respond to those who do not. This is a great book, especially in grades two, three and four.

---Alyssa A. Lappen

This book deals with everything from bullying to gang problems and even self-bullying behavior in a funny, cool way. Kids can totally relate to this book and the subject matter is presented in a non-threatening way. It's a must read for any parent of school-aged children.