November 25, 2019

On My Bookshelf: Posted by John David Anderson

Posted by John David Anderson is a book about bullying, but also about growing up, coming into your own, and the growing pains and strains of friendships. Despite their friendship, Frost, Deedee, Wolf, and Bench are all very different from the start, and  their responses and reactions are to the events in the book are just as different. Read on for more of my review and ideas for classroom application.
The basic plot from Amazon: In middle school, words aren’t just words. They can be weapons. They can be gifts. The right words can win you friends or make you enemies. They can come back to haunt you. Sometimes they can change things forever.

When cell phones are banned at Branton Middle School, Frost and his friends Deedee, Wolf, and Bench come up with a new way to communicate: leaving sticky notes for each other all around the school. It catches on, and soon all the kids in school are leaving notes—though for every kind and friendly one, there is a cutting and cruel one as well.

In the middle of this, a new girl named Rose arrives at school and sits at Frost’s lunch table. Rose is not like anyone else at Branton Middle School, and it’s clear that the close circle of friends Frost has made for himself won’t easily hold another. As the sticky-note war escalates, and the pressure to choose sides mounts, Frost soon realizes that after this year, nothing will ever be the same.

Why I liked it: Posted is a book about bullying, but also about growing up, coming into your own, and the growing pains and strains of friendships. Despite their friendship, Frost, Deedee, Wolf, and Bench are all very different from the start, and  their responses and reactions are to the events in the book are just as different. I think this is an important portrayal of friends and friendship for young people to read. Friends are not people who are just like you, and as you grow and change, so do your friendships and that is okay.

Classroom application: I would recommend Posted for middle school and up. Students who read and liked this book would enjoy The Misfits series by James Howe and vice versa. While I don't know that middle school students should be watching Stranger Things, students who enjoy the dynamics of that group of friends would also enjoy this book.

After reading activities could include researching the relationship between technology and inhibitions (why are people more likely to say cruel things in a text message or online than they would be to say those things in person). The book could be tied into activities for National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month (October) and used with these resources.

If you are interested in purchasing a copy of Posted for yourself, you can find it on Amazon here.

Note: The Literary Maven is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

Posted by John David Anderson is a book about bullying, but also about growing up, coming into your own, and the growing pains and strains of friendships. Despite their friendship, Frost, Deedee, Wolf, and Bench are all very different from the start, and  their responses and reactions are to the events in the book are just as different. Read on for more of my review and ideas for classroom application.

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