Alley Oops
Janice Levy & C. B. Decker
(Reviewer - Rebecca Brown)
2005 Flashlight Press
ISBN: 0972922547

JJ torments Patrick, who is overweight.

Sticks & stones may break my bones, but names will never harm me. Yeah, right. Sure. Who made that one up?

Alley Oops tells the story of the painful & humiliating aftermath of name-calling & bullying.

JJ's a skinny boy with a very sharp tongue & a nose for weakness, who's dug his teeth into making Patrick's days at school miserable by calling attention to Patrick's size & calling him mean names. Now Patrick is a big boy, with a soft heart. JJ's harassed him to the point he's scared to go to school.

When JJ's dad hears of his son's bullying, he first lectures him, which doesn't impress JJ one bit. So Dad takes him aside & tells the story of when he was a kid... & a bully, & the consequences he only recently had to face because of what he'd done back then.

Now JJ is impressed, so much so, he jumps on his bike & heads over to Patrick's home to see if he can patch things up. There he discovers how much they have in common: little sisters who can do no wrong, & a passion for arm-wrestling.

During a contest at school, JJ experiences the Alley Oops feeling of empowerment & self-esteem which comes from doing the right thing.

With snappy dialogue & marvelous pictures focusing on the harmful & lasting effects of bullying, & the importance of finding common ground toward conflict resolution, Alley Oops is a teaching story that needs to be read, again & again.

For ages 7-13

For other teaching books about keeping yourself safe from bullies & insult-throwers do check out:
Bullies To Buddies
One Less Victim

More from Janice Levy:

The Man Who Lived in a Hat
Abuelito Eats With His Fingers
Finding the Right Spot: When Kids Can't Live With Their Parents
(05/22/05)

Rebecca