Meanest Thing to Say (Little Bill Books for Beginning Readers) Book

Oprah Book Club® Selection, December 1997: What would you say if someone told you you smelled like an old egg salad? Little Bill learns from his father that "So?" may be the best retort. This contribution to well-known comedian Bill Cosby's Little Bill series for beginning readers tackles the challenge of not only outsmarting mean-spirited bullies, but understanding them, too. The book begins when a new boy named Michael Reilly comes to Little Bill's class. At recess he suggests a game called "Playing the Dozens," where you get 12 chances to say something mean to a person, and the meanest insult wins. As Little Bill spends the night agonizing about what prize-winning insults he can concoct for the next day's game, his father teaches him a sidestep maneuver that ends up diffusing the situation completely. If for some reason you miss this important lesson (your child certainly won't!), Clinical Professor of Psychiatry Alvin F. Poussaint's introduction provides a full analysis of peace-through-situation-deflation and how bullies are lonely and insecure. Early readers will welcome the large type and spacious format of the Little Bill books, enhanced by Varnette P. Honeywood's flat, vivacious, boldly colorful illustrations. (Ages 5 to 8) Read More