6 March 2015

ARCBA Blog Tour: Swallow Me Now! by Melissa Gijsbers


2 - 6 March 2015
is introducing


Swallow Me, Now!
(Lilly Pilly Press, October 2014)

By

Melissa Gijsbers




About the Book

All Sam wants to do is to fit in at her new school. Feeling alone, and desperately trying to find her place in the world, she concocts an AMAZING story - BUT it backfires on her, and she becomes known as the 'Evil Genius's Daughter!' Can her life get any worse?










About the Author

Melissa Gijsbers started writing when she was in High School during the 1990s, even winning some awards for a short story and a script. For many years, life got in the way of creative writing, however she did start blogging around 2006.

She currently lives in Melbourne, Australia with her two sons and a pet blue tongue lizard.








My Review

I think Sam is a character most children can relate to—starting a new school (or job) can be a scary experience. Sam has grown up in a missionary family, so isn't prepared for some of the behaviour of the children in her class, which leads to her making some bad decisions ... like not telling her parents when she has a problem, and lying to the other children in an attempt to fit in. 

I found myself getting frustrated with Sam at times, and had to remind myself she is only ten (or thereabouts—although we were told what grade she was in, I don't know exactly what age that is in Australia). 

Swallow Me Now! makes interesting points about school bullying—I think what impacted me the most was the different types of bullying, and how Sam didn't see the way the other girls were treating her was actually bullying. She put up with it for a long time before saying anything, which I guess is because she didn't know. But I knew, and I was getting cross with her, wishing she'd make better choices!

This would be a good story to share with primary-aged children, to help them understand what bullying is so they can tell a grown-up if it happens to them or to a friend, and hopefully show them that sometimes not doing something (like making friends with the new kid in class) can be just as bad as being mean. 

Thanks to the author for providing a free ebook for review. 

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