Review with Interview: Sophia Writes to Her Bully by Dr. Mildred D. Peyton and Giveaway!

Sophia Writes to Her Bully

 by Dr. Mildred D. Peyton, 

with Leah N. Peyton and 

Jada L. Peyton

Illustrated by Andy Hoang

Children's Education / Social Skills & School Life

24 pages

Tour dates: Oct 8 to 26 2018

Content Rating: G

Sophia experiences verbal and social (also referred to as relational) bullying from her classmates during recess. Whenever Sophia attempts to play with a group of students from her fourth-grade class, she is rejected; Amber also calls her an inappropriate name. Only when Sophia takes action by confronting her bully with a letter does her victimization finally end. Want to know what Sophia was being called and how her classmates treated her? Read Sophia Writes to Her Bully and find out what her letter is all about!

Social exclusion is a form of bullying experienced by some children. When it occurs, they feel isolated, alone, and humiliated. It is important for parents to be informed and talk with their children about all types of bullying (e.g., verbal, physical, social/relational, and cyberbullying) so they are better equipped to intervene or prevent their child from bullying others or being a victim of bullying.

To read reviews, please visit Dr. Mildren Peyton's page on iRead Book Tours.

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Sophia wants to play with a group of friends at school, but they don't want anything to do with her. Especially Amber actively encourages the others to ignore Sophia, calling her 'Fatty Patty'. After a particularly bad day, Sophia's mom notices something is off with her and tries to help out.

This is a very naturally flowing story which is easy to identify with. The bullying is there but in a more subtle form than sometimes found in literature...a more realistic form. Sophia's desire to play with the kids is constantly shot down, making it hard not to feel for her. And the name calling fits right in for the age group. It was nice to see Sophia's mother noticing the change in her daughter's mood and her calm but thoughtful reaction was inspiring. While the solution didn't reflect reality and could have been pulled out better, the message is still clear.

The illustrations are bright and bring the surroundings to life. They make it easy to slide into Sophia's position, and allow the needed emotions to come through at the right time. There are also helpful tips at the back of the book for parents, students and school personnel in regards to bullying. The suggestion of further references to find more information and assistance concerning bullying is also a nice extra, since bullying can take so many different forms and needs to be handled differently in each situation. To round things off, there's a section of statistics concerning bullying.

All in all, it's a nice book to turn to for younger readers and caretakers to gain a greater understanding of bullying, how it affects others and how it might be dealt with.



Interview with Dr. Mildred D. Peyton!

What made you write a book about bullying?

After completing my doctoral research study, "Exploring the Meaning of School
Bullying Among Parents of Victimized Children," I wanted to create greater
awareness and provide a new perspective on this topic.

Where do you write?

I generally write wherever I'm comfortable. That is usually on my bed, living
room, or in my work area.

Do you ever get writer's block? What helps you overcome it?

Yes, I do get writer's block, like most writers. When this happens, I walk away
and do chores or something else--it helps!

If you could put yourself as a character in your book, who would you be?

I would be the mother/parent; it's only natural.

There are many books out there about childhood or school bullying. What
makes yours different?

My books are unique because I don't just give my readers a story. I leave them
with links to other resources and additional facts on bullying. I equip my readers.

And here she is...

Dr. Mildred Peyton is the President and Founder of Peyton Consulting, LLC. Dr. Peyton established her consulting firm, which was initially geared towards school bullying services, in March 2016. She was inspired to create Peyton Consulting and become a children's author on bullying after completing her doctoral research study entitled, "Exploring the Meaning of School Bullying Among Parents of Victimized Children."

During her undergraduate internship in 2002-2003 at Salisbury Middle School in Wicomico County, Dr. Peyton and her team developed and facilitated a mentoring program, providing one-on-one conflict resolution and mediating skills to students who were identified by the program coordinator with ongoing needs of behavioral issues. One of the key/primary areas Dr. Peyton and the other mentors focused on was educating and addressing bullying issues with bullies and victims. And in her graduate program, Dr. Peyton also facilitated a school bullying focus group in 2005 at Maryvale Elementary School in Montgomery County, to teach participants about bullying behaviors and how to avoid bullying others. She also attended several bullying workshops to learn about the latest studies while working with the students. Her passion on this topic followed her even as she served as a member on the Committee on Hate/Violence at Montgomery County Office of Human Rights, in 2013. There she developed a brochure for students and parents for the annual bullying symposium and, provided rich knowledge and skills on this topic throughout the year.

Today, the company has expanded its services to target workplace bullying as well. With the experiences of others and Dr. Peyton's personal experience with adult bullying in the workplace (which caused her to resign from her employer in 2016), she believes attention, guidance, and solutions are also critical in this area. Dr. Peyton holds a Ph.D. in Human and Social Services with a concentration in Social Policy Analysis & Planning. She has a Bachelor's degree in Social Work and Sociology and a Master's degree in Counseling Psychology. Dr. Peyton is committed to using her knowledge and skills to influence positive change among students and adults.

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