No Bully

I will probably be preaching to the choir with the people reading here, but let's pause for a very important message: Let's Stop Bullying. Everyday, kids are being bullied in school and we should really do our part because kids are committing suicide because they cannot handle it. Believe me, I know, I have been there, but I am lucky to have support system with my group of friends. I recently read two books about bullying, so I thought why not write about both of them in one entry. "Bullied," by Jeff Erno is a compilation of seven short stories with that central theme. On a surface level, they could be cloying, and I am not going to pretend they are manipulative and self-serving. But, the service is for a very important message and I am willing to overlook whatever triteness exists in the narrative. I couldn't help but sympathize and empathize with each heartstring that is tugged. For variety the stories are told from different points of view and more or less different circumstances, but essentially they are all the same. I think it could have been edited better because some stories are redundant, but I really feel guilty criticizing this book because it is so important and the right kid could be reading this and that kid's life could potentially be saved. In a perfect world, this should be required reading for all high school kids.  "It Gets Better," is subtitled "Coming Out, Overcoming Bullying, And Creating A Life Worth Living," is a compilation of messages from different people about bullying. We get President Obama, we get Secretary Of State Hillary Clinton, We get Ellen Degeneres here, among hundreds of people. I can just imagine someone at a low point in their lives reading these pronouncements from this people, and it could hit them at the core. These two books use two different techniques to hammer the same message, and if even one life is changed by them, then nothing has been wasted. 

BC - 40, 41