Reviews tagging 'Bullying'

Blubber by Judy Blume

12 reviews

nellsir's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Fatphobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Physical abuse, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Vomit

ajay913's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying

katyw622's review against another edition

challenging dark sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Torture, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Racism

Minor: Vomit

mdavis26's review against another edition

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Fatphobia, Sexual assault, and Toxic friendship

lay_kone's review against another edition

emotional inspiring sad fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Vomit, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Addiction

maddie_1999's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment

mrsmishler's review against another edition

dark emotional fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, and Fatphobia

gaycornbread420's review against another edition

dark sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Fatphobia, and Racial slurs

stykze's review against another edition

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.0

This book started out good, but then it ended in a way that i personally didn't like. The narrator, Jill, is a bully to a fat girl in her class named Linda. The book leads you to think that one thing will happen but then it never does- and the thing that really happens is not nearly as good as what you thought it would be. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, and Fatphobia

Moderate: Eating disorder, Vomit, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Ableism, Addiction, and Drug use

backpackingbookworm's review against another edition

lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I'm slowly working my way through Judy Blume's books, starting with Blubber.

This one is heavy on the bullying, where an overweight girl in the class does a presentation on whales and is then given the cruel nickname, Blubber. It's one of few books I've read where the MC (Jill) is part of the bully gang, which made it difficult to like/sympathise with her. The shoe is soon on the other foot though when Jill falls victim to the bullies and realises that she needs to break away from the clique and do what is right, rather than giving in to the peer pressure from the other bullies.

Blubber definitely isn't a 'nice' read, with it revolving around singling out a fellow classmate and subjecting them to embarrassing and cruel acts. My heart ached for Linda who couldn't do anything without being tormented for her weight. At first, I hated that the book was narrated through the eyes of one of the bullies (albeit not the ringleader) as it made me dislike her and all her cruel friends, but it was also refreshing to see bullying from a different perspective, especially when the bully became the victim. Jill went through a transformation after getting a taste of her own medicine, which made her more redeemable when she accepted her wrongdoing and vowed to change.

Despite its year of publication, I would definitely still recommend this one to middle graders as it shows the difference between right and wrong, with plenty of morals to takeaway.

Rating breakdown

• Plot/narrative - 3.6
• Writing style/readability - 3.5
• Characters - 3.2
• Diverse themes - 3.9
• Ending - 3.4

Overall - 3.5 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying and Fatphobia