Bongo the Parrot and the Power of Kindness: A Tale of Bullying, Friendship, and Change

 

In my fifth book, there are two related stories: an African grey parrot named Bongo is a bully, and Robbie is bullied by Joey on the basketball court. Bongo is left with the Grace family while Shannon’s aunt and uncle travel overseas on business for a month. Joey is jealous of Robbie’s basketball ability, so he tries to make Robbie look clumsy on the basketball court.

Shannon and her parents are unaware that Bongo has developed some bad habits when he squawks mean words. He terrorizes their cat, Lily, who spends most of her time under Shannon’s bed when Bongo isn’t in his cage. Nana Weathers, Boomer, Chloe, and Shannon involve Bongo in their musical activities by training him with a clicker and treats to hopefully change his behavior. On the basketball court, Coach Evans becomes aware of his nephew’s behavior when Joey deliberately injures Robbie during a basketball game.

Here is an excerpt from Chapter 3: Clicker Training “Chloe, Nana Weathers said, “before Bongo steps up on your hand, use your clicker. Chloe stepped up next to Shannon and held out her hand. She used the clicker, but Bongo didn’t respond to her. Chloe began to sing.

Come, little Bongo, be my friend.

To my finger you can ascend.

Bongo is such a s-sweet little name.

Now let’s play our musical game.

Bongo’s head turned side to side listening to Chloe sing. He climbed up safely on her hand. She gave him a treat.

Having experienced bullying in my neighborhood when I was a child, I wrote this book with those experiences in mind. I believe children need to learn that bullying is never appropriate and how to respond if they observe or experience it. The definition of bullying falls in the following categories: Verbal abuse consists of teasing, name-calling, and threatening to cause harm. Social bullying consists of hurting someone’s reputation or leaving someone out in a social situation and can also be done in public. Physical bullying involves hurting a person’s body and possessions. In today’s technological age, the internet is often used as a means for bullying. I hope this book will help inform children and adults about bullying while at the same time making this a fun read.

Books by Christine Isley-Farmer