There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom by Louis Sachar

Bibliographic Information

Sachar, L. (1987). There's a Boy in the Girl's Bathroom. New York, NY: Yearling Book. ISBN: 0394805720.

Plot Summary

Bradley is an obnoxious kid. He lies, he picks fights, and he manipulates his parents. He's the kid in the classroom that no one wants to sit next to. Even his teacher prefers to pretend he doesn't exist. Bradley is lonely, but doesn't have the social skills to make friends. Instead, he tries to alienate people who try to get close to him. That applies to Jeff, the new kid who tries to be Bradley's friend. It also applies to Carla, the new school therapist who believes that Bradley can be a good kid if given the proper help. Through Jeff's friendship and Carla's guidance, will Bradley be able to figure out how to be kind and succeed in school or will he always be the misfit boy in the girls' bathroom?

Review

There's a lot of bullying in this book. Bradley is both the bully and the victim. His personality is so abrasive that even the teacher can't seem to help picking on him. This book addresses those kids who "seem to bring it on themselves" in terms of the harassment they receive and helps other tweens understand what might be going on in the minds of those kids who seem to be irreconcilably different.