February 8, 2013 is National Stop Bullying Day.  Everyone can spot a bully . . . unless they're looking in a mirror.  No one sees themselves as a bully.  But let's look at the definition of bullying: being mean to someone over and over again.  We've all been guilty of meanness at some time.  Have you ever spread rumors about someone?  Have you ever purposefully left someone out of your fun?  Have you ever hit or yelled at someone?  If you answered "yes" to any of those questions, ask yourself another question.  Do I do those things often?  Take a look at www.stopbully.gov.  This website gives you the information you need to help stop bullying in your school, online, and in your community.  There are tips geared specifically for kids and teens.  There's also lots of information for the adults in your life -- parents and teachers.  Sometimes it helps to read stories about people that are experiencing the same things.  Maybe one of these books, available at Hoover Public Library, will speak to you.
FOR KIDS
Adam Canfield, Watch Your Back! by Michael Winerip
Bullies Never Win by Margery Cuyler
Bully by Patricia Polacco
Bystander by James Preller
Confessions of a Former Bully by Trudy Ludwig
The Fourth Stall by Chris Rylander
How to Beat the Bully Without Really Trying by Scott Starkey
Jake Drake, Bully Buster by Andrew Clements
Lula Bell on Geekdom, Freakdom, and the Challenges of Bad Hair by C. C. Payne
Max Quigley: Technically Not a Bully by James Roy
Rules to Rock By by Josh Farrar
Stand Tall, Molly Lou Melon by Patty Lovell
Stand Up for Yourself and Your Friends: Dealing with Bullies and Bossiness, and Finding a Better Way by Patti Kelley Criswell
The Three Bully Goats by Leslie Kimmelman
Todd Goes for the Goal by Stuart Murray
Warp Speed by Lisa Yee
Why Are You Picking on Me?: Dealing with Bullies by John Burstein

FOR TEENS
The Cindrella Society by Kay Cassidy
Cracked by K. M. Walton
Crossing Lines by Paul Volponi
The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin by Josh Berk
Dear Bully: Seventy Authors Tell Their Stories edited by Carrie Jones & Megan Kelley Hall
Four Secrets by Margaret Willey
I Swear by Lane Davis
The Knife That Killed Me by Anthony McGowan
Leverage by Joshua Cohen
Mean Chicks, Cliques, and Dirty Tricks: A Real Girl's Guide to Getting Through the Day with Smarts and Style by Erika V. Shearin Karres
See You at Harry's by Johanna Knowles
Scrawl by Mark Shulman
Shooter by Walter Dean Myers
Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers

FOR TEENS
The Cindrella Society by Kay Cassidy
Cracked by K. M. Walton
Crossing Lines by Paul Volponi
The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin by Josh Berk
Dear Bully: Seventy Authors Tell Their Stories edited by Carrie Jones & Megan Kelley Hall
Four Secrets by Margaret Willey
I Swear by Lane Davis
The Knife That Killed Me by Anthony McGowan
Leverage by Joshua Cohen
Mean Chicks, Cliques, and Dirty Tricks: A Real Girl's Guide to Getting Through the Day with Smarts and Style by Erika V. Shearin Karres
See You at Harry's by Johanna Knowles
Scrawl by Mark Shulman
Shooter by Walter Dean Myers
Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers