I feel kind of mean saying it but I really didn't like this book. I wanted to like Jodee Blanco, this is her memoir of the bullying she endured from 5th to 12th grade. I was ready to feel sorry for her and then be uplifted by her triumph at the end but it just didn't happen for me. Jodee goes into excruciating detail about the humiliations she faced. Her part in all of them is always being the "good one". The one who helps the handicapped students, the one who tattles to the teacher, the one who excels at public speaking and writing poetry. With all those nice qualities going for you, how can you go through 7 years of school and not find a friend? To be the target of bullies at four different schools says that at some point, the problem belonged in some part to Jodee. Where were the adults in her community? Being pelted with rocks, being beaten by a mob - these things get noticed. It was all a little hard to swallow. And, of course, I have no patience for teenage poetry so she wasn't winning me over there.
Perhaps if she had journeyed a little more into her metamorphosis, it would have felt more real to me. But she goes from the torment of constant bullying for all those years to....turn the page and voila she's a successful publicist, works with movie stars, and is the belle of the ball at her high school reunion. Okay. And, with that, I was just glad it was done.
I passed it on to my teenage daughter, Bookworm, if she reads it, I'll give an update.
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2 comments:
I have met this woman, and I can honestly say that she is a rude, nasty person. I have not and will not read any of her books. She left a lasting impression on me, and I think it's laughable that a bully would write a book about BEING bullied.
I applaud you for honestly saying you did not enjoy the book. As I said, I have not read it, but everyone that has seems to go nuts over her, and I get the impression that it's only because of what I call the 'Oprah' sensation: good or not, it's something you're 'supposed' to like.
I recently attended a seminar by Jodee and then read her book immediately after, and I found a lot of the things she says in her presentation don't match with the story in the book. For example, Jodee mentioned how Nadia was involved in the incident when they stuffed snow in her ears and she also stated that Nadia threw the fetal pig at her, but if you read the book, Nadia isn't even involved in those events. That seems a little fishy to me. A few other things she said also didn't match up with her book.
Also, she was very rude. A few ladies came in during her seminar to set up for lunch and she rudely interrupted them and asked them to leave because she couldn't concentrate because of them. Also, during the book signing she insisted on signing the books when the people running the bookstore didn't want her to. When they tried to talk to her about it, she got very upset and insisted on signing all the books. Also, when I tried to thank her for sharing her story, she seemed bored, indifferent and had no response.
You would think someone who has been bullied as much as she claims to have been, she would be a little bit nicer to other people........
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