Book Reviews
What are people saying about this book?
“Biblio Reads” says...
This is an exceptional story told in earnest and with a lot of heart. Young Miss Jessica has a health condition that causes her to be overweight, but the bigger problem is the bullying. Good for her, she's got a super terrific loving family and an awesome doctor that support her.
I got so thoroughly wrapped up in this story and think young readers will too. The easy flow of dialog makes reading fun and fast paced. The first person narrative and touching illustrations make it easy to empathize with Jessica so the message to not judge someone based on how they look is well received. Kids will care about Jessica and have a new perspective when it comes to their classmates.
Perfect for ages 6-10. And...a job well done by this mother/daughter team! - Lisa Barker - "Biblio Reads Children's Book Review"
I got so thoroughly wrapped up in this story and think young readers will too. The easy flow of dialog makes reading fun and fast paced. The first person narrative and touching illustrations make it easy to empathize with Jessica so the message to not judge someone based on how they look is well received. Kids will care about Jessica and have a new perspective when it comes to their classmates.
Perfect for ages 6-10. And...a job well done by this mother/daughter team! - Lisa Barker - "Biblio Reads Children's Book Review"
Wayne S. Walker - "Home School Book Review" says...
Jessica is a young girl who is what the kids call "different." Can you guess why? One day, she is watching television with her mom. They see the President's wife, Michelle Obama, who says that if kids eat healthy they won't get obese. That makes Jessica sad because she eats healthy food but she's still overweight. She has a medical condition which is causing her problem. At preschool, the other kids tease her about being fat. Even some of her teachers poke fun. One said, "Guess you have French fries every night for dinner." Her mom and dad try to encourage her by reminding her that everyone is special and that she needs to value what's on the inside of her while ignoring what she can't change on the outside.
Will Jessica learn how to handle the taunting and bullying? Will the other kids ever change their attitudes towards her? And will that new doctor be able to do anything to help?
Author LaNiyah Bailey is a six-year-old Kindergarten student who, due to various medical problems, has had to deal with being made fun of because she's "different" and doesn't look "normal," just like the fictional Jessica. However, with the love and support of her family, she has overcome many obstacles and wants to share her story to let the world know that words can hurt and that people should look beyond what shows on the outside to see the true worth of those who may look different. This is a wonderful accomplishment for LaNiyah and a great reminder to both kids and adults not to judge others based on how they look. LaNiyah's pledge is, "I am beautiful. I am loved. I will not let what others say define me. Bullying is not cool!!!" There is a Parent-Teacher Guide in the back of the book that has tips on the prevention of both obesity and bullying, questions and answers to spark discussion, some helpful links, and an invitation for children to e-mail LaNiyah their own stories. The copy of the book sent for me to review was a hardback edition, but a new paperback edition was published by Createspace in 2011. A Kindle edition is also available for download from Amazon.
Will Jessica learn how to handle the taunting and bullying? Will the other kids ever change their attitudes towards her? And will that new doctor be able to do anything to help?
Author LaNiyah Bailey is a six-year-old Kindergarten student who, due to various medical problems, has had to deal with being made fun of because she's "different" and doesn't look "normal," just like the fictional Jessica. However, with the love and support of her family, she has overcome many obstacles and wants to share her story to let the world know that words can hurt and that people should look beyond what shows on the outside to see the true worth of those who may look different. This is a wonderful accomplishment for LaNiyah and a great reminder to both kids and adults not to judge others based on how they look. LaNiyah's pledge is, "I am beautiful. I am loved. I will not let what others say define me. Bullying is not cool!!!" There is a Parent-Teacher Guide in the back of the book that has tips on the prevention of both obesity and bullying, questions and answers to spark discussion, some helpful links, and an invitation for children to e-mail LaNiyah their own stories. The copy of the book sent for me to review was a hardback edition, but a new paperback edition was published by Createspace in 2011. A Kindle edition is also available for download from Amazon.
Blogcritic.org says...
Not Fat Because I Wanna Be is like no other children’s story. It’s based on a true story from the perspective of a six-year old girl named LaNiyah Bailey. Her mother LaToya White wrote her story for the world because she knew that it had to be told. Many kids struggle at school because of bullying and feeling different. But to think that kindergartener would suffer with that kind of problem is very sad indeed.
Most of us look different. But kids are very mean to those who appear to be different. Jessica in the story is overweight. Because of this, she is called names and is taunted by other mean kids. She struggles for a long time. She knows in her heart that it doesn’t have to be this way. Kids who are different don’t deserve to be bullied like this. LaNiyah’s underlying message is that we should look at a person’s heart and intentions instead of their outward appearance. If another kid’s heart is pure and their intentions aren’t mean, this person could be our friend regardless of how they look on the outside.
This story will make the reader swell with pride. I found myself feeling very sad for LaNiyah at the beginning. But then when I looked at her underlying message of the book and the courage that it must have taken for LaNiyah to want to share her story, I felt so proud of her. This story needs to be told, and we all need to heed the message in it.
Not Fat Because I Wanna Be is especially relevant during our current cultural times. It isn’t easy to be a kid today, and it especially isn’t easy if the child strays from the cultural standard of what is considered to be normal. We need to be more open-minded and to know in our hearts that we are all loveable, and can be loveable, regardless of how we look on the outside.
Thank you LaNiyah for writing about such an important topic!
Most of us look different. But kids are very mean to those who appear to be different. Jessica in the story is overweight. Because of this, she is called names and is taunted by other mean kids. She struggles for a long time. She knows in her heart that it doesn’t have to be this way. Kids who are different don’t deserve to be bullied like this. LaNiyah’s underlying message is that we should look at a person’s heart and intentions instead of their outward appearance. If another kid’s heart is pure and their intentions aren’t mean, this person could be our friend regardless of how they look on the outside.
This story will make the reader swell with pride. I found myself feeling very sad for LaNiyah at the beginning. But then when I looked at her underlying message of the book and the courage that it must have taken for LaNiyah to want to share her story, I felt so proud of her. This story needs to be told, and we all need to heed the message in it.
Not Fat Because I Wanna Be is especially relevant during our current cultural times. It isn’t easy to be a kid today, and it especially isn’t easy if the child strays from the cultural standard of what is considered to be normal. We need to be more open-minded and to know in our hearts that we are all loveable, and can be loveable, regardless of how we look on the outside.
Thank you LaNiyah for writing about such an important topic!
“The Crypto-capers” says...
Not Fat Because I Wanna Be is about a 6 year-old girl named Jessica who is overweight. She watches TV and hears that if children eat healthier they are less likely to become obese. In Jessica’s case, she’s obese, but it’s not because she doesn’t eat healthy. This confuses her. Her mother talks to her about how there are many things that make a person special, like hair color, height, freckles, etc…
But being obese is not the only thing that is bothering Jessica, it’s the teasing and bullying she’s receiving at school. Even teachers made rude and hurtful comments as she walked by. Each and every day held some new pain for Jessica. She would talk to her parents, and though they would reassure her that beauty comes from within, and for her to look at all the blessings in her life, it didn’t always help.
Her mother and father took Jessica to a doctor who might be able to identify any problems that might be causing her obesity. Sure enough, apparently she had quite a few problems, but the story focuses on a main one. Jessica gets an x-ray taken, as well as some blood. Not fun for a young child, but the doctor and nurses made her experience more delightful then it could have been.
Having trust in her doctor, and liking the way he treated her, not as a person who was obese, but like the wonderful child she was, really turned Jessica’s attitude around. He discovered that she had constipation and her colon was extremely swollen, which caused her stomach to stick out abnormally. Jessica learned what she had to do to keep it to a normal size as well as what to eat and what not to eat. But after she tells the children in her preschool about her condition, will they just tease her more, or will her bullying problem ever cease?
This is a story written by LaNiyah's mother, Latoya M. White, but embodies LaNiyah's experiences, thoughts and emotions. The moral of this story is for everyone to treat each other with respect no matter what they look like. As we all know, beauty fades, but what we are on the inside will always make us beautiful. Jessica had to learn to accept herself and her flaws. She put too much emphasis on what other people thought when she should’ve been more concerned with how she thought of herself. As individuals we must feel comfortable and happy in our own skin. If we are not happy with how we look or act, then it is up to us to fix it. In this case, Jessica’s family wanted her to be healthy and happy, so they took her to a doctor to identify any problems so they could be fixed, but it is up to Jessica to fix her self esteem.
Believing in yourself and what you can do is very important. That confidence is often blossomed at home; the sad fact is that some parents aren’t aware of what their children are doing or saying. Bullying is a big problem everywhere, even adults can get bullied, but that behavior is stemmed from somewhere and when children are younger, it is when they are the most impressionable, which makes parent’s responsible for setting their child straight on how to treat others. We should always remember the golden rule: Treat others as you would like to be treated.
Children from the ages of 4-8 who have had experience with bullies, will be able to empathize with Jessica’s plight and will hopefully learn something about themselves at the same time. There is no better strength then the one we find in ourselves to endure and overcome when times are difficult. It is that strength that people will see.
But being obese is not the only thing that is bothering Jessica, it’s the teasing and bullying she’s receiving at school. Even teachers made rude and hurtful comments as she walked by. Each and every day held some new pain for Jessica. She would talk to her parents, and though they would reassure her that beauty comes from within, and for her to look at all the blessings in her life, it didn’t always help.
Her mother and father took Jessica to a doctor who might be able to identify any problems that might be causing her obesity. Sure enough, apparently she had quite a few problems, but the story focuses on a main one. Jessica gets an x-ray taken, as well as some blood. Not fun for a young child, but the doctor and nurses made her experience more delightful then it could have been.
Having trust in her doctor, and liking the way he treated her, not as a person who was obese, but like the wonderful child she was, really turned Jessica’s attitude around. He discovered that she had constipation and her colon was extremely swollen, which caused her stomach to stick out abnormally. Jessica learned what she had to do to keep it to a normal size as well as what to eat and what not to eat. But after she tells the children in her preschool about her condition, will they just tease her more, or will her bullying problem ever cease?
This is a story written by LaNiyah's mother, Latoya M. White, but embodies LaNiyah's experiences, thoughts and emotions. The moral of this story is for everyone to treat each other with respect no matter what they look like. As we all know, beauty fades, but what we are on the inside will always make us beautiful. Jessica had to learn to accept herself and her flaws. She put too much emphasis on what other people thought when she should’ve been more concerned with how she thought of herself. As individuals we must feel comfortable and happy in our own skin. If we are not happy with how we look or act, then it is up to us to fix it. In this case, Jessica’s family wanted her to be healthy and happy, so they took her to a doctor to identify any problems so they could be fixed, but it is up to Jessica to fix her self esteem.
Believing in yourself and what you can do is very important. That confidence is often blossomed at home; the sad fact is that some parents aren’t aware of what their children are doing or saying. Bullying is a big problem everywhere, even adults can get bullied, but that behavior is stemmed from somewhere and when children are younger, it is when they are the most impressionable, which makes parent’s responsible for setting their child straight on how to treat others. We should always remember the golden rule: Treat others as you would like to be treated.
Children from the ages of 4-8 who have had experience with bullies, will be able to empathize with Jessica’s plight and will hopefully learn something about themselves at the same time. There is no better strength then the one we find in ourselves to endure and overcome when times are difficult. It is that strength that people will see.
“Writing to the hearts of children” says....
This is a wonderful easy reader chapter book written by 6 year old LaNiyah Bailey based on experiences and feelings that she has dealt with in her young life because of medical issues. It is an honest chapter by chapter dialog about teasing, bullying, tears, and what it is like to be different from the fictional character, Jess's point of view.
The character experiences lack of friends, mean taunting, and teasing because of being bigger (the kids called her fat) than her classmates. Even encouragement from the president's wife doesn't help because the character eats healthy, exercises, and has loving family support. It points out how what shows on the outside is not what a person is really like on the inside.
This author has done a fabulous job of telling it like it is from a child's point of view. It is a heartwarming and positive book that will encourage other children who are dealing with being different. But it will also open the eyes of children who may see themselves as the one who does the teasing.
I loved this book. It was honest, sincere, hopeful yet sad. The sad part is the truth that our young people are being teased and taunted by other peers and that is so hard on self esteem. This book points out how children can have another point of view by seeing what it is like for the character. The author has done a great job relating real life for the reader. Wonderful job.
The character experiences lack of friends, mean taunting, and teasing because of being bigger (the kids called her fat) than her classmates. Even encouragement from the president's wife doesn't help because the character eats healthy, exercises, and has loving family support. It points out how what shows on the outside is not what a person is really like on the inside.
This author has done a fabulous job of telling it like it is from a child's point of view. It is a heartwarming and positive book that will encourage other children who are dealing with being different. But it will also open the eyes of children who may see themselves as the one who does the teasing.
I loved this book. It was honest, sincere, hopeful yet sad. The sad part is the truth that our young people are being teased and taunted by other peers and that is so hard on self esteem. This book points out how children can have another point of view by seeing what it is like for the character. The author has done a great job relating real life for the reader. Wonderful job.
“Rambling of a Coffee Addicted Writer” says....
Not Fat Because I Wanna Be is written by six-year- old LaNiyah Bailey, and the story is based on her own life. The main character Jessica is made fun of by her preschool classmates because of her size. She wonders “Why Did God give me this big tummy and bow legs?” This is a big question for a girl to ponder with at such a young age. The name-calling at preschool gets worse and Jessica begins hiding in the bathroom. Even some of the teachers poke fun at her. Then one day, Jessica visited her new doctor, Dr. Middens. After a few tests, Jessica learns that her colon was swollen and that she would have to take a special medicine to make her better.
Writing a book at the age of six is a major accomplishment, especially with such a meaningful message for children and adults. The old saying ‘Stick and Stones may break my bone, but words can never hurt me,” is completely false, and both children and adults should know this. Not Fat Because I Wanna Be is a wonderful debut picture book that I recommend for readers of all ages.
Writing a book at the age of six is a major accomplishment, especially with such a meaningful message for children and adults. The old saying ‘Stick and Stones may break my bone, but words can never hurt me,” is completely false, and both children and adults should know this. Not Fat Because I Wanna Be is a wonderful debut picture book that I recommend for readers of all ages.