The Skinny On Bullying

by Cyrus Webb

Bullying is one of those things that has really evolved with time. It used to be just something you would find walking down the halls of school or egging on in the classroom.

Now thanks to technology it can be transferred their nasty email messages, pictures and posts over the internet and social networking sites.

When I was thinking abut bullying and how I wanted to address it in this issue of the magazine I first thought of all of the books I have had a chance to read that address the topic in ways that make the points about it stand out. At the top of that list for young readers was THE SKINNY ON BULLYING: The Legend of Gretchen my Mike Cassidy.

Mike appeared on Conversations LIVE in late  2010 to discuss the premise of the book, and I knew just by listening to him and reading it myself that it was going to make a difference.

The premise of the story is simple: Two young people, Beth and Billy, find themselves going from being liked in elementary school to being harassed in middle school! This is something different for them to experience, and it only seems to get worse after a new student named Gretchen enters the picture, and with her comes a litany of rumors about who she is what they have to fear from her.

This is a great book that not only identifies the various forms that bullying can come in but what we can do to turn a supposed enemy into a friend.

Here is my review of THE SKINNY ON BULLYING from Amazon.com:

"At a time when the word "bully" has been front and center on the national stage once again, author Mike Cassidy offers the world a useful tool in "The Skinny On Bullying." I have praised "The Skinny On" series in the past for providing great information in a clear, concise way, and this time it has done it by taking us into a situation where bullying is not just demonstrated but addressed in a way that we can all apply.

"I appreciate the thought that goes into the story of "Gretchen", the fictional bully in the story; and I think there is much to learn about even the way we handle bullies. Cassidy points out that spreading rumors about a person can be seen as a form of bullying as any action that is directly taken against an individual.

"Young people and adults will find something in this book that they can take away and apply in their daily lives. We would all do well to remember that whether online or offline, our actions have consequences, and there is much more that unites us than divides us so that should be the focus of our energy."

Get your copy of THE SKINNY ON BULLYING from http://www.theskinnyon.com/. Find out more information about Mike Cassidy by visiting http://www.cassidyventures.com/ or following him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/cassidyventures.