In this way, you begin to see the power of a little attention, care and affection. But through his eyes and a few conspicuous notes jotted down in the "margins" of the book, you also get to see the teacher that has forced him to keep up this journal in detention. Certainly, he's the star and anti-star of the show-you see his triumphs as well as his weaknesses, his flaws, and his seriously poor choices. Not only does it not really read like one, it's an actual narrative complete with dialogue that unfolds in a serial way, headlined by the date. And you can't help but hope hope hope that he'll progress and change and become a better person, even though you know his life's not going to miraculously change.īut SCRAWL isn't just a journal. Even though he's telling the story, Tod himself didn't seem to be able to see how his life was changing through the pages of his journal, but the teacher-and the reader-clearly do. Though I cringed at those moments where he would relapse and be an arse, I felt a need to cheer when he would rebound and take a few more baby steps forward. But also, I was starting to really root for him. Seriously funny stuff-I was so taken by the voice.
In reading the entries from Tod's journal, I felt this blooming sense of surprise. Because if you understand the why, you might stand a chance at not only protecting the victims of bullying, but maybe also save the bully (and in turn, all potential future victims). In reading the story of this particular bully, a person who is clearly not evil or malicious-merely a survivor (and SCRAWL seems to make a distinction)-you can't help but feel hopeful. It merely says look twice and try to get an idea of why.
But SCRAWL doesn't ask us to tolerate the behavior. Certainly, they're bullies and awful and their behavior shouldn't be tolerated. You see how deprivation, poverty and neglect affect more than just the physicality of a person. SCRAWL is a vivid portrayal of the ways in which environment can affect more than just a person's ability to feed and clothe himself. But it really saddened me, too, because in seeing his sarcasm and his self-deprecation, you also see his unflinching inward look at the ugly reality that is his life. Knocked my slippers off to read him and the way he approached the universe (the writing is quite sharp as well). His voice steals the show and had me turning pages just to see what he would say next. His drip-dry humor was just the sort I usually go for.
He's intelligent, clever, and ridiculously funny. Something else happened too: I began to understand Tod.īut Tod isn't your average ham-fisted, blockheaded bully either. But you know, through the course of reading SCRAWL, I did both of those things. So, I didn't want to sympathize with one. It's about-and written in the voice of-a bully. Here's the thing about this book: I sort of didn't want to like it.
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