My eleven-year-old has been bullied since he was in the first grade. Now that we have ended that period of his life he finds himself on the outside looking in. He has a few friends who have kept him from feeling like he’s completely alone, but dealing with the emotional toll of being bullied left him with little time and energy to find his place in his world. He now faces the hard-to-break-through walls of cliques. Cliques, Phonies, & Other Baloney, written and illustrated by Trevor Romain was suggested to me. A short, 129-page book, I decided to give it a try.

Cliques, Phonies, & Other Baloney is a humourous look at cliques, friends, phonies, and popularity. Written in a child’s vernacular, using slang such as “duh”, “dork”, and “barf”, it’s a less than thirty-minute read. The pages are full of humourous comic-style illustrations serving as excellent examples of clique, friend, and phoney behaviour, as well as exposing some of the myths of cliques, popularity, and friendship.Cliques, why they exist, the difference between good and bad cliques, and how to get past that clique mentality and make friends by being yourself and being friendly are explained clearly.

The chapters:

Just What Is a Clique?
Phonies and Fakes
Real Friends
What’s Popularity?
Tips, Tricks, and Helpful Hints
Resources
About the Author/Illustrator

I enjoyed the book. Romain defuses the feelings of being excluded with a humour that a child can relate to, making it an easy, non-threatening read. For example, in Four Dorky Things Cliques Do, number one is: They always travel in a group. They go everywhere together, like a herd of cows. Why do they want to behave like a big animal that says “Moo”? Number four is: They have a dress code. Most people in the clique wear the same kinds of shoes, T-shirts, jeans, jackets, and caps. They might have to wear pants so baggy that three people, a dog, and a gigantic Nerf ball could fit into a single pair. In Do’s and Don’ts For Making Friends, Romain states, Don’t stay inside by yourself all day watching TV, picking your nose, playing video gamess, or sitting in front of the computer. You won’t meet any new people, and a spider might build a web on your head.

As a parent I feel so helpless seeing my son suffer through these feelings of not belonging, being excluded, feeling unworthy. This book has helped me better understand how to deal with and respond to the obstacles and disappointments he’s facing, while ensuring that he keeps his sense of self-worth. My son found this book to be engaging, but dealing with issues that he already understands. He now understands that its going to take time to break into those groups that have already “labelled” him because of the bullying he endured for years. Time will make it better, but he wants it now, not in two years , not in two months, now! But he hasn’t given up! He’s friendly, he’s honest, and he’s himself. In doing research I’ve discovered that children who can move from group to group easily are usually the healthiest children. My son is on the periphery of several groups, and with his continued perseverance I think he’ll do just fine.

This book is recommended for Grades 3-8. My son feels this book would help anyone who doesn’t understand cliques. He thinks it would be reassuring to them to understand what cliques are and how to deal with them. I’d recommend this book to parents who are dealing with similar situations. The book gives a clear look at the concepts and offers basic suggestions parents could offer their children to help them cope. Romain gives children an excellent understanding of a sometimes terrifying situation, making it fun and easy to understand, while at the same time giving encouragement and supportive advice on how to deal with the problem.

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This review is part of the Lean-n-Mean Write-off hosted by sleeper54….this does NOT count as part of the review Tom! Damn, this was hard! We now return you to my usual “wordiness”!


Recommended: Yes