In Ella Mae: The Courageous Cheerleader, Ella Mae is bullied by some of the other
cheerleaders in her school. Rather than striking back at them – being mean in
return – she chooses to turn the other cheek and repay hurt with kindness.
Before long things turn around at her school and the kids no longer think it’s
cool to be mean. They even elect her queen for the day at her school.
Author Stephanie Cameron uses Galatians 6:9 as the reference for the
story. She also includes a list of three discussion questions at the end of the
book (each with its own Bible reference), as well as a suggested prayer and
another list of scriptures that can be used for references to the story.
The illustrations are cartoon-like, but they are colorful and work well
with the text.
What
I Like: Bullying
is, unfortunately, something many kids have to face on a daily basis. It’s good
to have stories that related to the subject. I also like that the text is based
on a true story. And, I like the numerous Bible references used for the text
and the study questions.
What
I Dislike: The
story is written in rhyme, and as you probably know, I am generally not a fan
of rhyming text. This is because it is very difficult to write in rhyme and to
do it well. Unfortunately, although most of the text does actually rhyme, the
rhyme is often forced, making the sentences sound unnatural and throwing off
they rhythm of the text.
Also,
although the story is about bullying, the reason for the bullying is never
mentioned. Why is Ella being bullied?
Overall
Rating: Good.
Age Appeal: It’s tough to say what the age
group is because the story is about cheerleaders. You usually don’t have
cheerleaders in elementary school, but the text is written for that age group.
So, I’d have to say ages 8-12 would be
appropriate.
Publisher Info: Tate Publishing, 2012; ISBN: 9781628546002; Paperback, $8.99.
Buy the hardcover edition now at Amazon $18.99!
Special
Info: A link to
an audio download for the story is included with the book.
No comments:
Post a Comment