{Mini Review} Bystander - James Preller

Bystander by James Preller
Genre: YA realistic fiction
Release Date: Sept 29 / 2009
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Eric is the new kid in seventh grade. Griffin wants to be his friend. When you’re new in town, it’s hard to know who to hang out with—and who to avoid. Griffin seems cool, confident, and popular.

But something isn't right about Griffin. He always seems to be in the middle of bad things. And if Griffin doesn't like you, you'd better watch your back. There might be a target on it.

As Eric gets drawn deeper into Griffin’s dark world, he begins to see the truth about Griffin: he’s a liar, a bully, a thief. Eric wants to break away, do the right thing. But in one shocking moment, he goes from being a bystander . . . to the bully’s next victim.

I've never read many books about bullying before so this was my first. Eric is the new kid in seventh grade and Griffin seems to be a good friend. But later, Eric slowly finds out how Griffin is really like and what a bully he was. Eric later tries to do stuff about it which works but I feel like the issue isn't really resolved in the end. Eric just stopped being the target, that's all. I think this book should've went more in depth for the bullying as it's something that kids deal with every day. This is a quick and light read about bullying that I'm sure people will enjoy.