Me and Banksy by Tanya Lloyd Kyi - ADVISABLE

Me and Banksy by Tanya Lloyd Kyi, 272 pages. Penguin Random House, 2020. $16. 

Language: G; Mature Content: PG; Violence: G. 

BUYING ADVISORY: MS - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

Dominica attends a fancy private middle school that prides itself on the security of the students. In fact, the number of cameras in the halls and classrooms are a bit disconcerting. Especially when images from those cameras start appearing on the student online forum - images and clips that are embarrassing, someone picking her nose, a boy with his fly open, and even Dom, who thought she was alone in a private corner of the library and quickly turned her shirt right-side out. When Dom tells the principal, she is accused of violating the social media safety rules herself. So Dominica and a few of her friends decide to fight back themselves, organizing an art installation as a protest. 

There were a lot of things I really liked about "Me and Banksy" I liked that Kyi established right away that this school was pretty over the top - the kids wear a nametag that notifies their parents when they arrive at school. I learned about the artist Banksy, I knew about his/her art but not about the meaning behind some the work. However, making the principal's son the villain with no consequences felt very stereotypical, as did several of the other classmates. Includes an authors note about not trying to fight cyber-bullying without the help of a trusted adult. 

Lisa Librarian