Please Stop Laughing at Me... By Jodee Blanco

Publishers Weekly calls is “courageous and honest”

Jack Canfield, coauthor of Chicken Soup for the soul, says, “Please Stop Laughing at Me… Will do for survivors of school bullying what Dave Pelzer’s book A Child Called “It” did for child abuse.”

Having read Pelzer’s books and having just finished, Blanco’s book, I couldn’t agree more. Blanco’s book is a fast read, I myself finished it within hours. Blanco’s writing gives her readers a one sided view into her life and the torture she endured by her tormentors. Her peers spit, beat, humiliate and taunt her on and off, from grade school until high school graduation. The pain doesn’t end there, those who should protect her often turn a blind eye or add fuel to an already burning fire. A teacher goes so far as to humiliate her in class, causing snickers and more hostility from her peers.

Having been subjected to bulling and having bullied myself, I recommend that every parent and student take the time to read and discuss this book. It may be the very book that can save your child’s life. In a world where school shootings are becoming the “norm” (There were, three last week, alone!), this book may open up the hearts of parents and children giving them compassion in an already hostile world. Blanco’s look, into School Hell, gives people the ability to see the results of bullying and how it affects the human body, mentally, physically and emotionally.

Grade: A -