I hated that the soldier doll had my name. I mean, please. I didn't play with him much. He was another Christmas present from my clueless grandparents. One time when they were visiting, my grandpa asked me if G.I. Joe had been in any wars lately. I said, "No, but he and Ken got married last week." Every Christmas since then, my grandparents have sent me a check.

Another thing I think about names is that they DO hurt. They hurt because we believe them. We think they are telling us something true about ourselves, something other people can see even if we don't. —Bobby Goodspeed

Crying can help, too. People are often afraid to cry because they are told that crying is for babies. Crying does not make you a baby, no matter what anyone says. There are times when people feel so bad that they can't express their feelings in words. At those times, crying helps.

A day can start out ordinary and end up being in the top ten. —Joe Bunch

Banning books is just another form of bullying. It's all about fear and an assumption of power. The key is to address the fear and deny the power.

Sometimes I wish I were a character in a book and there was a writer out there giving me things to say.

Sometimes kids just act impulsively, but it's because we have strong feelings, not because we're trying to make trouble.