OnlineBookClub.org

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "My Doll & Me: Superheroes Fighting Bullying With Kindness" by Carla Norde' and LoLo Smith.]

“All of us must help to prevent bullying. We must learn to be kind to one another. Kindness is the new cool!” – Carla Norde and Lolo Smith, My Doll & Me: Superheroes Fighting Bullying With Kindness

Bullying is something that can negatively affect children’s lives. Bullying can hurt children’s feelings, affect their self-esteem and leave a lasting impact on them. It is for this reason that I applaud children’s books that tackle the issue of bullying. My Doll and Me: Superheroes Fighting Bullying With Kindness by Carla Norde and Lolo Smith is a book that champions fighting bullying with positive interactions.

My Doll and Me: Superheroes Fighting Bullying With Kindness is a non-fiction children’s book that defines bullying in simple terms while also providing ways to combat it. The book is filled with colorful and well-drawn illustrations of girls dressed like famous superheroes with dolls at their side. Alongside those illustrations are different facts about bullying. The text addresses the four types of bullying; verbal, physical, social and cyber bullying. It goes on to explain each type and how each type can hurt someone. There are many other facts about bullying that are given as well. The book also contains different tips to fight bullying with kind actions and a pledge that children can make against bullying.

I feel that this book should read in every classroom and home. Even though it is non-fiction, the information given was written in a concise and simple way so that young readers can comprehend it. I loved the illustrations, but I would’ve preferred if the characters in the book would have been more diverse in terms of ethnicity. Bullying can happen to anyone, no matter your gender, race or beliefs. I would’ve preferred if the illustrations could have better reflected that fact.

If I had to name another negative about the book it would be that I felt it was a little too factual. While the facts about bullying were very important and every child should learn them, I believe that some children might be entertained by the illustrations, but become bored with the content. I felt the content should have been presented in a more entertaining way that will catch and maintain a child’s attention. While the image of a girl dressed up like Batgirl is nice, it is not the main point of the book. The images overpower the text in the book.

I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. The negatives are that I wish the illustrations were more diverse and that the content of the book was presented in a more interesting fashion. Despite the negatives, I still believe that this a great book that can be read between a group of friends or between an adult and child. As I mentioned earlier, bullying is an issue that has affected children in the past and will continue to impact them in the future. Children need to know that the bullying can be fought with kindness. I believe this book will be an enlightening read to a young reader.

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My Doll & Me: Superheroes Fighting Bullying With Kindness
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I think we could use more books about bullying. While they won't solve the problem, maybe they can open up discussions. It's too bad that the illustrations weren't more diverse. Maybe the book can go through another round of editing? Thanks for the review.

Great review! It's always nice to see anti-bullying books that promote positive interactions. You made a really good point about the story not being entertaining enough for a child, due to the focus on the facts. I agree that there should be more diversity shown in the images of the characters when discussing this topic.

kandscreeley wrote:I think we could use more books about bullying. While they won't solve the problem, maybe they can open up discussions. It's too bad that the illustrations weren't more diverse. Maybe the book can go through another round of editing? Thanks for the review.

I agree! This book would be great in a classroom and would open up a lot of discussion topics!

Thanks for reading!

-- 31 May 2017, 11:29 --

bookowlie wrote:Great review! It's always nice to see anti-bullying books that promote positive interactions. You made a really good point about the story not being entertaining enough for a child, due to the focus on the facts. I agree that there should be more diversity shown in the images of the characters when discussing this topic.

Yes, I feel that any children's book that talks openly about such a universal concern in our world, should have diverse characters.

Thanks for reading, bookowlie!

Nice review! I enjoyed your suggestions, and I'm glad to hear that a book like this exists.

Interesting twist in using superheroes to boost children's self image as a way to deter bullying. Thanks for the review.

Thank you for reading, everyone!

Great review. I totally understand what you mean by the girls could have been more varied - I did not spot a black girl nor a Latina girl on the cover - I am both black and Latino so I look out for my peeps.

Jaime Lync wrote:Great review. I totally understand what you mean by the girls could have been more varied - I did not spot a black girl nor a Latina girl on the cover - I am both black and Latino so I look out for my peeps.

Thanks for reading, Jaime!

Bullying is a good theme for children's books since the habit starts from childhood, and children are also the main targets of bullies. This book seems to do justice to the topic, and the dolls and pictures make it all the more appealing to children. Kudos for the review.

Thank you for reading! ?

I really enjoyed your review. Would have also liked more racial diversity in this...

Thank you so much for reading! ?

Wish to read this

Thank you for reading! ?