Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
mcskireader's review against another edition
4.0
I still have occasional nightmares as a 35 year old about having to go back to the hell that was high school, and I had an easier time than sweet, smart Piddy did. Such a good book with great characters.
coughdrop01's review against another edition
4.0
When I started this book, I was worried it was going to be a little after school special-y and was very suspicious of it. But, it does a great job of showing how insidious bullying really can be and senseless without being condescending about it. I also like that its also at its heart about the main character and her mom. It's honestly a really sweet book.
librosycafe25's review against another edition
5.0
Realistic theme for middle grade and high school students. Piddy Sanchez is smart, pretty, and has goals until a tormenting bully stresses her out so badly that she's becoming someone else and ready to drop out of school.
The characters were likable, believable and interesting. I enjoyed the family dynamics, the friends, and how each supported Piddy, even when she became secretive and frustratingly obnoxious.
This is a story that helps people understand the devastating effects a violent bully can reek on a school and family.
The characters were likable, believable and interesting. I enjoyed the family dynamics, the friends, and how each supported Piddy, even when she became secretive and frustratingly obnoxious.
This is a story that helps people understand the devastating effects a violent bully can reek on a school and family.
endermanlibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
Great quick book. Good character definition and development, believable storyline.
richincolor's review against another edition
4.0
Right from the get-go, I loved this book. It starts out with a memorable opening line — “Yaqui Delgado wants to kick your ass” — and keeps right on to the end without losing momentum. Piddy Sanchez tells her story with a unique, genuine voice. The immediacy of the narrative kept me hooked for the two hours it took for me to finish the book.
I love funny books of any kind, so this book was right up my alley in terms of humor. At the same time, it deals with pretty serious subjects — bullying and, indirectly, abuse. The way these issues were handled was pretty well done. The book manages to stay away from being grimdark in tone while keeping things relevant.
What I loved most about the book was the family and friends of Piddy Sanchez. Piddy picks up a motley assortment of friends — friends who are stuck-up, geeky or cool. They all have their flaws and Piddy doesn’t gloss over them, which makes the friendships in the book seem all the more realistic. On top of that, the family around Piddy are just as complex and fascinating as her friends. Her mother’s best friend Lila is like the cool aunt I always wanted. She’s sassy, beautiful, and dispenses wisdom like she’s giving out candy — here, try it and you’re welcome. Piddy’s relationship with her mother is what really gets me. Her mother reminds me of my mother — snippy, full of strange advice, and strong. The story isn’t just about bullying. It’s about the mother-daughter relationship that is growing and changing. Strong female relationships are front and center in this book.
This was a fantastic book that I wouldn’t hesitate to put on a high school reading list.
Recommendation: Buy it now — or, at least, rush to your library and get it. It’s definitely worth a read.
I love funny books of any kind, so this book was right up my alley in terms of humor. At the same time, it deals with pretty serious subjects — bullying and, indirectly, abuse. The way these issues were handled was pretty well done. The book manages to stay away from being grimdark in tone while keeping things relevant.
What I loved most about the book was the family and friends of Piddy Sanchez. Piddy picks up a motley assortment of friends — friends who are stuck-up, geeky or cool. They all have their flaws and Piddy doesn’t gloss over them, which makes the friendships in the book seem all the more realistic. On top of that, the family around Piddy are just as complex and fascinating as her friends. Her mother’s best friend Lila is like the cool aunt I always wanted. She’s sassy, beautiful, and dispenses wisdom like she’s giving out candy — here, try it and you’re welcome. Piddy’s relationship with her mother is what really gets me. Her mother reminds me of my mother — snippy, full of strange advice, and strong. The story isn’t just about bullying. It’s about the mother-daughter relationship that is growing and changing. Strong female relationships are front and center in this book.
This was a fantastic book that I wouldn’t hesitate to put on a high school reading list.
Recommendation: Buy it now — or, at least, rush to your library and get it. It’s definitely worth a read.
plexbrarian's review against another edition
5.0
tl;dr Piddy just moved across town and got transferred to a new school, where she becomes the victim of Yaqui Delgado and her group's cruel bullying.
triggers: bullying, peer pressure, child/family abuse, alcohol abuse
This book made me feel a lot of stuff, which I hadn't really experienced in the past several months of reading lots of books. Having been bullied in high school for no apparent reason, I identified a lot with Piddy. You feel helpless. You're terrified of telling an adult, even if there's a 'No Bullying' policy in place because you KNOW it'll get back to your aggressor and it will make everything worse AND make you seem weak, because eventually all your peers will find out. But in the meantime, the bullying gets worse. Piddy has to make a lot of decisions, and I think that would be a great talking point with middle and high schoolers. The kids experiencing the same things as Piddy would have a chance to reflect on whether what they're doing to avoid or resolve their issues are the same as Piddy's and vice versa, and think about what might work to help them. The story might present them with possible options they'd never considered before on their own. Plus, this book deals not only with bullying in schools but also in the home.
I wasn't sure what to expect coming into this; I think I'd seen something about it in the CCBC listserv before it shut down, and the title intrigued me. I had thought it might be more lighthearted, about a girl making friends with her bully after treating her with kindness and teaching her how to walk while "wiggling her ass" the way Piddy apparently does that causes her so much undue grief.
This is not at all how the book went. It is so much more realistic and harsh and personally significant that I felt angry and hurt for Piddy and wanted to be there and other stuff that's probably spoiler-ish to disclose. So happy the library where I work has a copy so I can talk about it and grab it for anyone interested.
triggers: bullying, peer pressure, child/family abuse, alcohol abuse
This book made me feel a lot of stuff, which I hadn't really experienced in the past several months of reading lots of books. Having been bullied in high school for no apparent reason, I identified a lot with Piddy. You feel helpless. You're terrified of telling an adult, even if there's a 'No Bullying' policy in place because you KNOW it'll get back to your aggressor and it will make everything worse AND make you seem weak, because eventually all your peers will find out. But in the meantime, the bullying gets worse. Piddy has to make a lot of decisions, and I think that would be a great talking point with middle and high schoolers. The kids experiencing the same things as Piddy would have a chance to reflect on whether what they're doing to avoid or resolve their issues are the same as Piddy's and vice versa, and think about what might work to help them. The story might present them with possible options they'd never considered before on their own. Plus, this book deals not only with bullying in schools but also in the home.
I wasn't sure what to expect coming into this; I think I'd seen something about it in the CCBC listserv before it shut down, and the title intrigued me. I had thought it might be more lighthearted, about a girl making friends with her bully after treating her with kindness and teaching her how to walk while "wiggling her ass" the way Piddy apparently does that causes her so much undue grief.
This is not at all how the book went. It is so much more realistic and harsh and personally significant that I felt angry and hurt for Piddy and wanted to be there and other stuff that's probably spoiler-ish to disclose. So happy the library where I work has a copy so I can talk about it and grab it for anyone interested.
librarybonanza's review against another edition
4.0
Age: Middle School-High School
Tough Issue: Bullying
This novel offers a unique addition to the books about being bullied. Piddy moves to a new school and becomes the target of a bully's attacks, for reasons Piddy (and others) cannot identify. There's no justification to this bullying, and Piddy is caught unawares. I felt the victim's actions were not heroic--they were believable and organic. Because she didn't know why Yaqui hated her, she had no control over preventing Yaqui's hatred. Piddy didn't want to tell on her because she was scared of the heinous reaction by Yaqui. Stuck in this impossible situation, Piddy became disconnected with the world. As she became disconnected, she started losing everything she enjoyed. There was a ray of hope with her love interest, but his role in the book wasn't that significant.
On a side note, the name of this book and the book cover are perfect and very intriguing to browsers.
"One morning before school, some girl tells Piddy Sanchez that Yaqui Delgado hates her and wants to kick her ass. Piddy doesn’t even know who Yaqui is, never mind what she’s done to piss her off. Word is that Yaqui thinks Piddy is stuck-up, shakes her stuff when she walks, and isn’t Latin enough with her white skin, good grades, and no accent. And Yaqui isn’t kidding around, so Piddy better watch her back. At first Piddy is more concerned with trying to find out more about the father she’s never met and how to balance honors courses with her weekend job at the neighborhood hair salon. But as the harassment escalates, avoiding Yaqui and her gang starts to take over Piddy’s life. Is there any way for Piddy to survive without closing herself off or running away?" Goodreads review.
Tough Issue: Bullying
This novel offers a unique addition to the books about being bullied. Piddy moves to a new school and becomes the target of a bully's attacks, for reasons Piddy (and others) cannot identify. There's no justification to this bullying, and Piddy is caught unawares. I felt the victim's actions were not heroic--they were believable and organic. Because she didn't know why Yaqui hated her, she had no control over preventing Yaqui's hatred. Piddy didn't want to tell on her because she was scared of the heinous reaction by Yaqui. Stuck in this impossible situation, Piddy became disconnected with the world. As she became disconnected, she started losing everything she enjoyed. There was a ray of hope with her love interest, but his role in the book wasn't that significant.
Spoiler
Her final response to the whole situation is also not heroic--she chooses to run. She chooses to not stand up to her attacker and, essentially, let her win. Yet, this is not seen as cowardly, but reasonable. We've seen the downward spiral that Piddy is experiencing and we want her to get out of it by any means possible. Once again, another unique addition to bullying stories.On a side note, the name of this book and the book cover are perfect and very intriguing to browsers.
"One morning before school, some girl tells Piddy Sanchez that Yaqui Delgado hates her and wants to kick her ass. Piddy doesn’t even know who Yaqui is, never mind what she’s done to piss her off. Word is that Yaqui thinks Piddy is stuck-up, shakes her stuff when she walks, and isn’t Latin enough with her white skin, good grades, and no accent. And Yaqui isn’t kidding around, so Piddy better watch her back. At first Piddy is more concerned with trying to find out more about the father she’s never met and how to balance honors courses with her weekend job at the neighborhood hair salon. But as the harassment escalates, avoiding Yaqui and her gang starts to take over Piddy’s life. Is there any way for Piddy to survive without closing herself off or running away?" Goodreads review.
simsbrarian's review against another edition
4.0
Very well written and page-turning: I couldn't put it down! Piddy is starting over in a new school; but immediately a girl she doesn't even know wants to "kick her ass". This was a really touching story on bullying, growing up, finding your place, and being strong.
tarafoor's review against another edition
4.0
Very deep and emotional read about bullying and how rough teenage years can be. Bonus perk since it focused on Hispanic characters.
jennifrencham's review against another edition
2.0
Medina, Meg. Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass. Candlewick, 2013.
Piddy isn't Latina enough for Yaqui Delgado. Also, she's in honors classes, and she's new, so she's highly suspect. Thus follows a year of school where Yaqui torments Piddy for no reason other than that she doesn't like her. Piddy is trying to balance her classes, her job, and avoiding Yaqui and her thugs. When the bullying escalates to a group assault outside Piddy's house, an assault which was recorded and posted online, Piddy finally realizes something has to give.
This was an okay book. It's a very real story, and the resolution - Piddy going to a new school, and Yaqui and her gang being sort-of punished because the principal isn't sure how to deal with all of them - is quite realistic. I am glad for the emphasis on Latino/a culture in this book, and I'm sure it would be popular at my library, but I just didn't enjoy the story. I strongly dislike the fact that Piddy had to leave her school in order to solve this problem, although I can see that this was the easiest solution. The only part I liked was that Piddy tried to clean graffiti off of another kid's locker, and that kid, in turn, was the one who reported the bullying situation. I also disliked the plethora of Spanish words throughout, not because they didn't fit the story, but because there was no glossary and not enough context to help me understand them. The Swahili words in Golden Boy were defined in the back and made the story real. The Spanish words in this book just made it frustrating.
Recommended for: teens
Red Flags: lots of bullying, language
Overall Rating: 2/5 stars
Piddy isn't Latina enough for Yaqui Delgado. Also, she's in honors classes, and she's new, so she's highly suspect. Thus follows a year of school where Yaqui torments Piddy for no reason other than that she doesn't like her. Piddy is trying to balance her classes, her job, and avoiding Yaqui and her thugs. When the bullying escalates to a group assault outside Piddy's house, an assault which was recorded and posted online, Piddy finally realizes something has to give.
This was an okay book. It's a very real story, and the resolution - Piddy going to a new school, and Yaqui and her gang being sort-of punished because the principal isn't sure how to deal with all of them - is quite realistic. I am glad for the emphasis on Latino/a culture in this book, and I'm sure it would be popular at my library, but I just didn't enjoy the story. I strongly dislike the fact that Piddy had to leave her school in order to solve this problem, although I can see that this was the easiest solution. The only part I liked was that Piddy tried to clean graffiti off of another kid's locker, and that kid, in turn, was the one who reported the bullying situation. I also disliked the plethora of Spanish words throughout, not because they didn't fit the story, but because there was no glossary and not enough context to help me understand them. The Swahili words in Golden Boy were defined in the back and made the story real. The Spanish words in this book just made it frustrating.
Recommended for: teens
Red Flags: lots of bullying, language
Overall Rating: 2/5 stars