The Berenstain Bears and the Bully

by Stan & Jan Berenstain

Girl on girl bullying

Children's book review by Steve Barancik

Ages 5-8

Many families have to address the issue of bullying at some point in time. The Berenstain Bears, of course, are no exception.

Sister has been beaten up at school. Mama and Papa counsel ignoring the bully, while Brother's instinct is to go take him on himself.

Only the bully is a girl. And boys don't hit girls (at least not in Berenstain Bears world).

Brother instead takes it upon himself to secretly teach Sister how to defend herself, and she takes to it with relish. But this book isn't about going back to the bully and hitting her harder than she hit you.

Sister returns to school and follows her parents' counsel about ignoring the bully. But when the bully (named Tuffy) starts tormenting a small animal, Sister can't help herself. Admonishing Tuffy to stop hurting the little bird, Tuffy says

The fight is on. Sister manages to bloody Tuffy's nose. Both children are sent to the principal's office, and it's Tuffy who cries while she waits. She's worried about what's in store for her when her parents find out.

The Berenstain Bears on bullying

One thing the Berenstain's do well is capture multiple viewpoints. Leave it to Stan and Jan to remind us that even the bully has something going on too. Sister figures out for herself that Tuffy "gets hit a lot at home."

The principal knows that too. She doesn't tell Tuffy's parents and instead sends her to the school psychologist.

The multiple viewpoints thing is a strength. The Berenstains have a knack for reminding us what it's like to be in someone else's shoes. Their stories tend to end with better understanding all around.

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