Dealing with bullying

The Recess Queen

by Alexis O'Neill ; illustrated by Laura Huliska-Beith

All the kids at school are afraid of Mean Jean the Recess Queen.  She is the playground bully who always gets things her own way.  That is, until a new girl called Katie Sue, "who looks like someone you'd scare with a Boo", starts at school.  She has no preconceived ideas about the playground 'order' and goes right ahead and does things just as she pleases!  And when Mean Jean challenges her, Katie Sue stands up for herself.  Katie Sue then proceeds to offer to play with Jean and Jean is so taken aback (as no-one has offered to play with her before), that she sheepishly joins in!  Jean soon realises that its much more fun to play with someone rather than bully others so that she can play with things by herself.  The playground quickly becomes a great place for all the kids at school.  This captivating tale is told in rhyme and it can be used to discuss, with young children, how to deal with bullies.

Citation:

O'Neill, Alexis & Huliska-Beith, Laura. The Recess Queen, New York : Scholastic, 2002.

Community Rating:

179 reader ratings with an average score of 4.06 out of 5 stars (courtesy of www.GoodReads.com)

Awards:

(1) Maryland Children’s Book Award, Winner 2004

(2) Virginia Young Readers, Winner 2003-2004