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Picture Me
by Lori Weber
A YA novel about three teen girls and bullying -- where everything is more complicated than it seems
When a well-meaning English teacher has overweight student Krista read aloud a poem about body image titled "Barbie Doll" in class, she ignites a simmering bullying event based on Krista's appearance. Krista's best friend, and witness to the event, Tessa, is suspended for fighting to defend her friend. The girl who bullies Krista seems unaffected by the incident at school and more concerned with what an older guy thinks of her. But as the three characters' paths intersect, their inner lives are revealed. Each emerges as a much more complicated individual than their simple bully, target, and witness labels.
About the Author
LORI WEBER has published poetry, short stories, and essays in several Canadian literary journals and collections. She has also writtern several YA novels. She lives in Pointe-Claire, Quebec.
Reviews
"Picture Me opens with a classroom recitation of Marge Piercy's classic poem "Barbie Doll," which leads to a bullying incident that will have a butterfly effect on the lives of three teenage girls...Each girl narrates her own story as body image consciousness exacts its own unique toll on these three young lives."
Assembly on Literature for Adolescents of the NCTE
"This is a thoughtful and nuanced story that explores issues of bullying and identity. I appreciated that the story is narrated from multiple perspectives, which gives the reader an understanding of the complexities of each character's experiences."
Nora Peterman,, Educator at the University of Pennsylvania, Graduate School of Education
"Picture Me takes what might otherwise have been a predictable issue-driven novel about bullying and adds interest by having each chapter switch between a trio of narrative voices: the bully (Chelsea), the victim (Krista), and the victim's friend (Tessa). Despite differing priorities and family lives, the three middle-school girls are all striving for control in a world in which they are relatively powerless."
Quill & Quire
Subjects (BISAC)
JUVENILE FICTION / Social Themes / Adolescence & Coming of Age, JUVENILE FICTION / Social Themes / Bullying, JUVENILE FICTION / Social Themes / Self-Esteem & Self-Reliance
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