I would definitely recommend it to kids at my school. But I think it will be just right for preteenagers. It drove me crazy and I ended skipping reading a lot of sentences.Īs a reading experience, as an adult, I found Rosalind's voice rather childish for me. What was really annoying is the overusing of capitalization. Rosalind's bond with her dying brother is one of the loveliest brother/sister relationships I have read. The side story of her brother 'Seb' was sweetly and perfectly written. I had to struggle for a long time like her to find the courage to talk to people who I don't know and I had a lot of bad experiences that prolonged the time that I took to free myself from shyness.

of course, I wasn't that silent, but I had a lot of challenges while dealing with the outside world. Teachers in this story were kind and supportive to Rosalind which was really important but wasn't enough to make her feel protected.Īs a shy person, I can relate to what Rosalind went through. I liked how the story pointed out how the school's leniency with bullying is what makes the school a scary and unsafe environment for any kid. Depicting one dimensional 'Bad character' that doesn't do anything other than doing others wrong wouldn't give me a very believable story. What is behind that cruelty and aggressiveness is not less important than filling pages describing their mean acts towards those who can't stand for themselves.

Showing the other side of the bully is what is always needed or missed in writing a story about bullying. It was Children's Book of the Month in The Guardian and has recently been shortlisted for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize 2020. Tamsin's second novel, Jemima Small Versus the Universe is a bold, funny, heartwarming novel dealing with big themes of weight-related bullying, body-shaming and, most importantly, learning to be happy with who you are. The book tackles themes of bullying, anxiety and social media in a fresh, funny and compelling voice and recently won the Awesome Book Award 2019. Her award-winning novel, Being Miss Nobody (Usborne Publishing) tells the story of eleven-year-old Rosalind who can't speak. She studied English Literature and Creative Writing at university, and has taught English at secondary level for many years. Tamsin Winter grew up in a tiny Northamptonshire village where she spent her childhood reading books and writing stories. 'Tamsin Winter is fast becoming a favourite for younger teenagers, chronicling those first years at secondary school with warmth and honesty.'

Being miss nobody book