Don’t Judge Me! By Lisa Schroeder - ESSENTIAL

 Don’t Judge Me! By Lisa Schroeder, 256 pages. Scholastic, NOV 2020. $18 

Content: G 

 BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ESSENTIAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH 

Hazel, 6th grader, and her BFF Tori and very excited to be entering middle school. Tori’s older brother Ben is an 8th grader there and Hazel has a bit of a crush on him. Then one day Hazel finds a notebook of Ben’s and it is full of the names of girls at their school and anonymous comments and ratings. Hazel decides to steal the book and gather the girls to counterattack the boys’ awful behavior. They may have a hard time getting an adult to listen to them, however. 

Schroeder skillfully addresses the hot, continual problem topic of sexual harassment in schools. And she does it in a way that is totally honest, but also totally accessible to the intended audience. Great pairing for with Maybe He Just Likes You by Barbara Dee. 

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS