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Summary
Summary
In this latest addition to the Kissing Hand book collection, Chester Raccoon must learn to deal with another common problem of childhood: a bully at school.
When Mrs. Raccoon learns that there is a bully problem at school, she decides to investigate the situation. But after seeing the bully for herself, she shares a story about a forest that was full of smooth yellow stones, and how the animals living there changed a pointy stone they found into a smooth stone so that it wouldn't hurt any tender paws. Chester, Ronny, and Cassy follow the spirit of Mrs. Raccoon's story when they next encounter the Bully. Approaching him as a group, they invite him to play, proving that the best way to get rid of an enemy is to make him or her a friend. This book encourages children to understand that many child bullies are themselves unhappy and gives readers a good example of settling differences by peaceful means. Educators will embrace this story about a positive strategy for dealing with a bully.
Author Notes
Audrey Penn takes her one-woman educational program, the Writing Penn, into schools, libraries, and children's hospitals where she shapes and refines her story ideas in partnership with kids. She is also highly sought after as a conference keynote speaker by groups of teachers and other professionals who work with children.
An award-winning illustrator, Barbara Leonard Gibson was a freelance artist in the Baltimore-Washington area for twenty-five years. Originally from New York, and with a degree in Fine Art and Design from Carnegie Mellon University, she worked in many areas including historical illustration, children's books, and magazines, cartooning, portraiture, wildlife illustration, natural sciences, advertising, fantasy, and science fiction.
Reviews (2)
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 2-This fourth title in the series that began with The Kissing Hand (Tanglewood, 2007) drips with the same cloying sentimentality that characterized the others. Chester Raccoon, his younger brother, and a friend tell Mrs. Raccoon that they want to stay home from school because they are being bullied. When they describe the various nasty things the badger does, Mother Raccoon walks them to school, then leaves them there to face another day of torment. When they return and recite another litany of abuse-"Even Owl Teacher couldn't get him to behave"-she calls all the animals together and shares a didactic tale about a forest where the creatures treasure smooth yellow stones, but then one day happen upon a unique blue one that is sharp and pointy. Working together, they chip away at the sharp points until the blue stone is just like the yellow ones. The next day, the animals go outside for recess together, confront the bully, and then ask him to play. He "squeals in delight" at the offer. Simplistic solutions of this nature do little to assist youngsters who must deal with genuine bullies whose pattern of behavior is rarely altered by the offer of a game of catch. Gibson's illustrations, although occasionally leaning toward the precious, are bright and attractive, and the faces of the animals are quite expressive. The story will have an audience where the other books are popular, but better choices to discuss bullying abound, including Alexis O'Neill's The Recess Queen (Scholastic, 2002) and Trudy Ludwig's My Secret Bully (Tricycle, 2005).-Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
The author of The Kissing Hand (1993) revisits her raccoon family in this sappy and didactic tale about coping with a bully. Chester and his siblings do not want to attend school; their mother finally discovers that a badger is bullying them regularly. She gives them the kissing-hand treatment and sends them off to school. When they return home and recount the bully's activities, she gathers all the schoolchildren together and tells an allegorical tale about how to smooth the rough edges of a bully. Of course, it works instantly (and without following the logic of the allegory), and they all become great friends. Jarring changes of perspective and highly anthropomorphized Disney-esque animals assault the senses with color and complete coverage of each page. The slick, Photoshopped quality of the illustrations reflects the facile text. Unfortunately, this is sure to be requested by the many adult fans of The Kissing Hand; steer them to the likes of Helen Lester's Hooway for Wodney Wat (1999) or Anthony Browne's Willy books for kid-savvy treatment. (Picture book. 4-7) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.