The Little Bully

Little Boost

by Beth Bracken, Jennifer A. Bell (Illustrator)

Billy is a nice boy who likes school, until he encounters a bully named Fred.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Friendship, School

32 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Beth Bracken is a children's book editor. She lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota, with her husband, Steve, and their son, Sam. When she's not reading, writing, or editing books, Beth spends most of her time knitting endlessly while watching reruns of old TV shows and drinking lots of tea.

Reviews

[Rahmadiyanti · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bullying rasanya sudah jadi problem di mana pun, bahkan anak TK sekalipun banyak yang mengalami bully. Buku ini bisa menjadi pendamping untuk anak-anak yang mengalami bully dan bagaimana berani melawan bully tsb.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

REALLY great basic book about bullying. Read with the 4/5s. I think it could be read to any grade of elementary student, even though it is directed to younger kids. I am looking into getting more of this series for the library.
Update: It was good for PreK too.

[Mario Flores · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book for various reaasons!! I liked that Billy was nice enough to not tease Fred, even though he could do so in so many ways, even more so than Fred did to him. It showed a bit of wisdom on Billy's part to understand how Fred could be teased, yet not tease Fred back, even though Fred teased him for the slightest of things. When it was time to finally speak up, Billy did it in a nice and adult-like manner, which caused Fred to finally stop his bullying, hence allowing both of them to become friends. The story also taught forgiveness in this sense, compassion, redemption, and empathy for others. This was "hands-down" my favorite anti-bullying book yet!

[Relyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think if Beth Bracken could know how well-received this book is by kindergarteners and first graders, she'd be delighted. I used this book in my library lesson to teach character lessons about bullying and kindness and standing up for yourself. Let me tell you, I hardly had to do a thing - this book did it all. The only thing I did was keep the class discussion on track. The students learned everything they needed to from the book. Thanks, Ms. Bracken.

Classroom Connections
Bullying
Kindness
Standing up for yourself

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I liked this. Fred is being picked on by Billy. About half way through the book, Fred notices Billy doesn't have any other friends who will even play with him, and Fred kind of uses that leverage to get Billy to change. I feel like this could have explored more about why Billy was a bully in the first place.

[Mariarosa · Rating 1 out of 5]

"Wait a second. Why was he even his friend in the first place. He had a bunch of friends already and the other kids already knew not to be friends with him."-my younger siblings. My younger siblings did not really care for this book.

[Kit · Rating 1 out of 5]

Implausible and inaccurate trajectory and resolution of bullying to what is in reality. This could be really get a kid that is being bullied bummed out when they see their situation playing out different for the worse.

[Marla Singer · Rating 4 out of 5]

puanım 4-4,5 arası. ve bence muhakkak her çocuk özellikle anaokulu-ilkokul çocukları okumalı. insanların hırçınlığı altında kırgın, yalnız, küçük bir çocuk duruyor. maalesef bunu hem kendimizde hem başkalarında gözlemlerken unutuyoruz. yine aynı şekilde, hem kendimizi hem de başkalarını unutuyoruz

[Jnase1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read aloud for younger kids to address the problem of bullying and how to handle a bully.

[Ana Stefania Neag · Rating 4 out of 5]

O poveste despre bullying. Destul de interesanta.

[Rocheal Hoffman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beth Bracken mixes things up a bit by introducing an unlikely and miniature mouse (Fred) that likes to bully larger characters in the school; especially Billy. Fred points out all of Billy's mishaps, and makes it very apparent to the entire classroom that Billy drew a picture with a lot of girl colors in it. The illustrations in this book are complimentary, and add a nice touch to the text. It is appropriate that the only one laughing when Billy gets made fun of is Fred, and Billy's parents remain uplifting and inspiring when they encourage Billy to keep his head high and stay in school-- even when he doesn't want to. At the resolution, Fred is given a respectful taste of his own medicine, and finally apologized to Billy, who readily accepts Fred as a friend. This book would be appropriate to use in character education, and students could be encouraged to discuss why they think the other friends did not take up for Billy when he was being made fun of. Children may like to use puppets to recreate this book during center time to role-play and practice how to handle difficult situations.

[Ariel Cummins · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really was unimpressed by this book. Story about Billy, who gets bullied at school by Fred, who is a tiny mouse. He eventually tells Fred nobody will play with him unless he gets nicer, and then Fred shapes up.

The art is actually pretty super cute. The animals are expressive and friendly looking (even mean ole Fred).

My problems with this book are that it's incredibly didactic and has some weird word choices. For example, Billy is cool because he "has a nice smile" (looking good means you're a good person!) and the best thing anyone can be is a "cool guy". Why does everyone have to be cool?

Overall, I think there are more persuasive and subtle books in the world about bullying.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bullies come in all sorts of shapes and sizes as Billy comes to realize in this simple picture book. Just about everyone likes Billy, but his smaller friend, Fred, a mouse, enjoys poking fun of him and pointing out his mistakes. When his self-esteem is shattered by Fred's persistently negative comments, he wants to stay home. Instead, he stands up for himself without being mean to Fred, and calls him on his rude behavior. Although the illustrations feature animals grappling with issues of bullying, clearly, this picture book has application for older readers as well. One of the best parts of the book involves Billy's refusal to let Fred's comments about him define him.

[Kate Hastings · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grades K-1. A little mouse (Fred) teases Billy the Beaver about everything-- his clothes, how he writes, and pointing out ever imperfection. Pretty soon Billy starts to feel like nobody likes him and doesn't want to go to school... until he starts to realize that Fred might be the one who is insecure. So he tells Fred that he likes himself and that if he keeps being mean, he won't be friends with him anymore. That's the wake-up call Fred needed. A nice intro to being nice to classmates.

[Jeanne Mcpeak · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Little Bully is a good choice for discussing bullying with young children and to help them learn how to deal with a bully. Billy doesn't like it when Fred is mean to him and it makes Billy feel bad about himself. When Billy takes a good look at Fred and realizes that the reason for Fred's bullying is that he is really insecure about himself, Billy speaks up and tells Fred how he feels about his behavior. When Fred's behavior is checked, the boys actually learn to be friends.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is perfect for my 3.5 year old whose recent immersion in social settings has proved frustrating when not everyone gets along or just doesn't have nice manners.

[Eileen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bullying