Interview for Strike One by Andrea Prostko

Fifth grader Billy Carmichael is very popular, a great student and a star baseball player. He is looking forward to his last few weeks in elementary school, and can hardly wait until the end-of-term school picnic, followed by the biggest baseball game of the year. Before all this can happen, however, Billy must deal with the escapades of his best friend, Jacob Riley. Jacob is another popular boy at school, but also a bully. Billy is able to accept most of Jacob's behavior, but he constantly struggles with the way Jacob treats Timmy Watkins, a quiet, overweight new kid at school. Jacob calls Timmy "fat boy" and embarrasses him in front of the rest of the kids. Jacob takes advantage of every opportunity to harass Timmy, beginning with pushing him off the school bus. He doesn't stop there, however, finding all sorts of occasions to make Timmy the subject of his ridicule. All of these events upset Billy, and even affect his ability to play baseball. Rather than confronting Jacob or befriending Timmy, he chooses to ignore it. Billy does, though, turn to his father to discuss his feelings. Strike One! shows what happens when the tables are turned, and the bully needs help from the victim. About the Author: Andrea Prostko hopes to encourage young boys to read. She lives with her family in suburban Detroit and is working on her next book.