New Beginnings - Review

Title:  New Beginnings
Author: Rebecca Emin
Source: Grimoire Books

Goodreads Summary:

Sam Hendry is not looking forward to starting at her new school. Things go from bad to worse as the day of truth arrives and all of her fears come true... and then some.

When Sam meets a different group of people who immediately accept her as a friend, she begins to feel more positive.

With her new friends and interests, will Sam finally feel able to face the bully who taunts her, and to summon up the courage to perform on stage?

My thoughts:

I like to read books by authors who are just trying out their wings, but I am discerning and think about which ones I will read.  I know a few beginning authors, and if I can help them out I will, but there are just so many out there that I really limit this.  When I met Jonathan Rand, of American Chillers fame, we talked about writing and just starting out, and he said when he first started writing the Chillers books, no one wanted to take a chance on him, so he self-published.  He soon became a huge success.  I know the students at our school love him!  So I think of him when I get a request, but I also think about the book too.

I decided I wanted to read this book first because I work in a school library and this is a book geared for the ages at my school, and second because it is about bullying, and we have had a huge anti-bullying campaign in our schools for years. 

I am glad that I chose to read this book - I think that kids will benefit from reading it.  Many times victims of bullies remain silent, and let the bullying continue, much to their detriment.  They don't know how to handle it, who to tell, if they will be believed even.  New Beginnings deals with all of these thoughts, and also explains what to do if you are bullied in a way that they may relate to. Sam, the main character who is being bullied, lets things go to far, to the point where the bullying becomes physically violent.  After finding an anti-bullying website, she takes control of the situation.  The student bullying Sam eventually realized they are the one with a problem and apologizes to Sam, but not before Sam tells a trusted teacher what has been going on.

This is definitely a book I am going to have in our library.