‘What YOU Can Do About Bullying’

I always look for a chance to showcase resources about bullying, and my explorations recently led me to What YOU Can Do About Bullying by Max & Zoey, written by Ari Magnusson and illustrated by Greg Marathas (Olivander Press).

Two cartoon characters, Max and Zoey, explain bullying to young readers. The book begins with a special overview for the youngest readership (kindergarten to second-grade), but is suitable for a broad spectrum of ages and emotional maturity.

This book offers a comprehensive explanation of bullying. Accurate terms for types of bullying are presented in an easy-to-understand way.

Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule

Among things that happened this week: Someone asked me (via a comment on Facebook appended to a public post), if a doctor had ever verified that I had autism.

Validation for non-degreed librarians

“No librarian should feel inadequate for learning the discipline on the ground rather than in a classroom.” At BookRiot, Michelle Anne Schingler provides validation for librarians who don’t have a Master’s degree in Library Science — who “merely live” library work instead of having studied it through a four-year university. Those non-degreed librarians must surely also include those of us who earned a community college vocational certificate or Associate in Science degree.

‘Lowriders to the Center of the Earth’

In Lowriders in Space (Chronicle Books, 2014), Lupe Impala, Elirio Malaria and El Chavo Flapjack Octopus achieved their dream of owning their own garage, where they could repair, detail and clean cars without having to answer to their tyrannical boss.

But the book’s closing page introduced a new crisis: their beloved cat Genie was gone. Now in Lowriders to the Center of the Earth (July 2016), the trio set out on a road trip in search of their missing cat.

Written by Cathy Camper and illustrated by Raúl the Third, this new graphic novel combines a storyline that many children can relate to — searching for a missing pet — with Aztec mythology and geological science. (Genie is being held prisoner by the Lord of the Underworld and as our heroes travel ever deeper toward the center of the earth, El Chavo Flapjack Octopus humorously scrambles the names for the various layers of rock.)

‘Switched On’ by John Elder Robison

In 2008, John Elder Robison took part in a trial study that involved electromagnetic pulses of energy directed at areas in a person’s brain. The purpose of the study was to explore the possibility of helping people with autism read emotions in other people.

Robison documents his experience in Switched On, A Memoir of Brain Change and Emotional Awakening (Random House Publishing Group, March 22, 2016).

The treatments provoked a variety of effects as different areas of the brain were targeted. Robison documents a short-term ability to read people’s moods from their faces.