To This Day

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Book:  To This Day (Book Link)
Author: Shane Koyczan (Author Link)
Illustrator: Shane Koyczan (Illustrator Link)
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Date of Publication: 2012
Genre: Middle School Reader, Diverse Protagonist, Informational Text
Lexile Score: Unavailable - Intended for ages 9-13
Citation: Koyczan, S. (2014). To this day: For the bullied and beautiful. Toronto: Annick Press.

Summary:  This story is written in a poetic manner and follows the life of someone who has been bullied.  It pulls in some of the authors real life experiences of being bullied as a kid, and how he progressed through life.  It also inputs other others around him that were bullied and how somethings that happen to people as it follow them all through their lives.  It shows that when someone is bullied in a young grade they the words stay with you.  They have to hide in the hallways, and fear going to school.  They also have to find ways to deal with the pain, and sometimes don't know who to turn to.  Then as they become adults they still might not feel as though they are good enough, and struggle with self confidence and finding themselves.  However it also showcases how individuals are able to find their own inner strength to push through these tough times. 

Audience: This book is targeted at grades fifth through eighth.  I think because the book has such a factual story line that any younger than fifth grade might be too much for them to take.  I think that the reader has to have some background information about bullying, therapy, and overall life progression.

Evaluation:  I would consider this to be a high quality picture book.  The book illustrations make you feel the pain that the character the author is talking about is feeling.  It also gives many real life examples about being bullied.  It also shows many real life implications that bullying can have on people.  It doesn't sugar coat anything, and has a very raw story line.  

Activity: 
Storytelling Stones:  For this activity the reader could be given 5 stones and paint.  Then on each of the five rocks they will have the goal of retelling the main points of the story.  In a classroom setting this would be a creative way for the students to learn to summarize and pin point main ideas. 

From: Taylor, M., & Marie, D. (2015, April 08). Story Stones for Your Garden Classroom. Retrieved from https://imaginationsoup.net/story-stones-garden-classroom/

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