Man, children can be little monsters. Blume captures that in this book; she doesn’t pull any punches (and neither do some of the characters). Protagonist Jill isn’t particularly likable, but she’s a great study of how one can be drawn into bullying behavior even without specific negative intentions. I noted with interest all of the changes in the sorts of freedoms kids had at the time the book was written as compared to now. I’m not sure what modern-day kids would make of this story. I thought I had read it long ago, but maybe I missed this one? I don’t know if I’d recommend it to kids, but I can see it being useful in an anti-bullying discussion, maybe paired with a more recent text.
(Reviewed from a copy borrowed through my library system.)
It's getting so that I am very loathe to keep really old titles. Even John Bellairs has conversations with overweight characters that just don't stand up today. Things change. While I was reading books from the 1950s in the 1970s, I wasn't reading books from the 1920s!
ReplyDeleteGood point! I think it's hard for those of us who grew up reading these books to accept that they've aged -- and in some cases, not gracefully. This one isn't bed, but I do question whether kids now could relate to certain aspects of the book. But maybe I'm not giving kids enough credit.
DeleteI distinctly remember reading this book when I was a teen. I bet I'd find something things appalling or questionable if I read it now!
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