Nothing's Fair in Fifth Grade

Elsie Edwards #1

by Barthe DeClements

Jenny knows one thing for sure - Elsie Edwards is a fat thief who steals people's lunch money to buy candy. So when the book club money disappears, why is the whole class punished? Nothing's fair!

But soon Jenny realizes some things aren't fair for Elsie, either. Elsie is on a strict diet, but when she starts losing weight, her mother won't buy her new clothes. Instead, she plans to send Elsie to boarding school. Suddenly everyone wants to help Elsie. Nothing's fair in fifth grade - but sometimes things get better!

Genres: Childrens, Middle Grade, Fiction, Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, Friendship, Contemporary

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1981

Reviews

[Carrie Padian · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is pretty much the most horrible thing I have ever read. I had this book when I was a kid and I have to cringe now when I read the way Elsie's character is written, what everyone says about her (she's fat, so she's automatically "gross") and what she says about herself. First we hate her because she's fat and gross, then we hate her because she eats everyone's food (obviously she does, don't forget she's fat and that's what all fat people do!) and then she steals their money too. Oh, but she's smart apparently, and her mom is kind of a bitch, so now we understand. But we don't really like her at all until her stupid diet starts working and she tells us how she knows she was gross before and is glad she isn't now. Oh thank god for the healing power of not being fat anymore! What a lovely, magical message to impart to young girls! Blech. It's crap.

[Leoness726 · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'd just like to say to those of you who think this book was not a real representation of fifth grade and it was "over the top", this was a pretty realistic representation for me. Granted I don't remember all the details of the book, but I remember relating to it at the time.

I actually read this book when I was in the 5th grade the year it was published... and I... was the fat blonde girl. My day at school consisted of being taunted and teased. Kids would act like I smelled bad (I didn't) and made jokes that I never showered. My hair was difficult to tame so they also liked to say that I didn't brush my hair. I spent my recess alone on the field, walking around the perimeter. I had friends, but we didn't always hang out together during recess because they would do things that would put me in the spotlight to get mocked. I wanted to jump rope, but couldn't because I'd get laughed at. I wanted to play tether ball but the meanest boys in school would say nasty things to me endlessly. I wanted to play wall ball... but again... same thing. If I sat on the swings or played on the monkey bars, I was shouted at not to break it. If I got upset they'd say, "Watch out or she's going to sit on you!" My last name, unfortunately, sounds like "bomb" (it's not) but that's how some people chose to pronounce. So of course I was the source of laughter when someone would shout "SHE'S GOING TO EXPLODE!" I was asked if I "liked to eat" and when I answered "well doesn't everyone like to eat?" the boy said "haha no... I don't like to eat." And proceeded with his usual torments.

After I had already read this book, my fifth grade teacher decided to read this book to the class (she read to us every day). And she always read the names of the chapters. And the first chapter is titled, "The Fat Blonde Girl." When she pulled out this book, I absolutely dreaded her reading the title of the first chapter. I wished and prayed inside my head that she would skip it. But... she didn't. She read it loud and clear... THE FAT BLONDE GIRL. Every single kid in my class turned to look at me and laugh. And maybe it was just because I was feeling humiliated, but I swear the teacher actually smirked a bit.

So for those of you who had a lovely childhood where no one was cruel to you, be very grateful for that. And I'm really glad that you personally weren't this cruel to anyone. But bullying does exist. It did in 1990 and it does now.

And to teachers... if you have an overweight little girl in your class... I beg of you... don't read this book out loud to the class. I think maybe you think that it would help somehow, because it's supposed to be a feel good story about acceptance... but kids won't see it that way. It will just fuel the jokes and make life so much harder for her.

[Lala BooksandLala]

childhood favourite book re-reads vlog: https://youtu.be/7mD8UUiDnKE

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Blubber, take note: THIS is how you do a Fat Girl storyline.

For one thing, Elsie Edwards is actually fat, not just "pudgy". She's clearly obese, she eats for comfort, she steals people's food and lunch money, and she's been in trouble for her bad habits. And yet you still feel sympathy for her because even a sneaky thief with an eating problem doesn't deserve the bullying she gets from her classmates and for her own mother to treat her like shit and blatantly favor her spoiled little sister.

Jenny Sawyer is a likeable protagonist. She's not perfect and at times you do kinda want to shake her a little, but she doesn't just pick on Elsie out of wanting to fit in; when she does get pissed at Elsie it's after the money is stolen. And more importantly? She changes. She realizes that Elsie is indeed human and reaches out to her, becoming her friend.

Elsie's transformation and integration into the group is well done, as are her efforts to slim down. Unfortunately, her mother is a horrible person and keeps treating her like a bad seed rather than realizing her daughter is trying to change. Granted, going along with the other girls' hitchhiking plan wasn't a good move for obvious reasons, but even when ROBIN is the one who makes it worse by jumping back in the truck to get her purse Mrs. Edwards is all too eager to blame Elsie for the whole thing. As well as Robin and Kenny making a mess in the kitchen in an earlier chapter. Because precious baby Robin can do no wrong and Elsie is a bad bad girl. Yeah, I don't like Elsie's mother, can you tell?

But ultimately Elsie gets her well-deserved happy ending. As for Jenny, her plot is slightly more simplistic: Get better at math and learn compassion. She does both with the help of Elsie, who's a whiz at math and accepts Jenny's offer of friendship once the initial tension is out of the way.

So yes. Unlike the whiny, irritating Jill Brenner and the plot device Linda Fischer, Jenny Sawyer and Elsie Edwards are well-written characters who give this plot the sensitivity and dignity it deserves.

[Katie T · Rating 1 out of 5]

I remember reading this multiple times in the mid 90s. I don't remember this being almost exclusively about fat shaming though. This book is awful. It's cute the girls become friends at the end but it's a pointless story of cruelty. I can't believe I read this as a child. I'm starting to wonder about a lot of my reading choices published largely between the 70s and 90s.

[Adrienne · Rating 4 out of 5]

You guys have to understand that when this book was written, they didn't ACTUALLY deal with body image problems. This book was written by a teacher and her class. It's pretty amazing that a teacher got a book published by having students write what happened next.

I read this book so many times when I was a kid, because I was and still am a re-reader. In the 1980s, being overweight was demonized. This was how it was, unfortunately.

I think the author was actually writing about issues her students had. Her next book was about a girl who had a learning disability and always thought of herself as "dumb," until she came to terms with it being the way her brain worked and using tools to help herself process information differently.

We can't judge art and literature from the past under the rules of a later time. We'd have to cancel most films made before 2010, most television shows, so much literature. We can see it for what it was, rather than demonizing it against the rules of a more enlightened society.

[Mindy (Book Snitch) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book when I was a kid and there are parts of this book that I still think of as an adult. My parents got this book for me in hopes that it would make me want to be thin. I didn't have self esteem issues or body image issues until I read this book and realized that I was Elsie and that is what people thought of me. Fat, ugly and gross.



This lead to eating disorders and severe self esteem issues. Did this book cause all my problems & issues? No. Of course not, but it did make me aware of myself and what others thought of me and it escalated from there. I still look down at my toes and think about this book and remember Elsie's struggle to see her toes.... my struggle to see my toes.



I do not recommend this book to anyone.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read and reread this as a kid, since it was one of my precious book order books! There was something so satisfying about the scene at the slumber party when the mom takes Elsie's pinned together clothes and tailors them for her, and then yells back when Elsie's mother calls to complain about her meddling! I mean, I realize now that it's a bit problematic how Elsie is treated and how much better things get as she loses weight, I also don't remember if anything is resolved with her mother, who is basically emotionally abusive. But it felt very, very real, and the relationships all around felt extremely natural.

[Kris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Y'all. I like to think I had discriminating taste as a reader, even when I was a kid.

This book is proof that I didn't.

I read this at least ten times in elementary school. And it is pretty awful. It's fat-shamey and even the "good" characters are bullies, and redemption only comes through the fat kid being able to do something for the other kids and losing weight.

Oh, and *spoiler alert*, of course the fat kid is the thief so she can buy more food. Ugh.

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was in 5th grade, I encountered this book under some odd circumstances while staying at a girl's house. I picked it up and started reading, and was hooked.

I love it. I loved it as a kid, and having recently ordered it online and read it again, I love it all the more as an adult, and can appreciate how excellent it is on a deeper level.

The characters are just totally REAL. That's the best way to put it. I could relate to them, boys and girls alike. Their dialog was spot-on and nearly 100% accurate, and their life situations and home lives were entirely believable. It easily could have been my class. Even the first-person narration captured a kid's way of thinking excellently. And it's not just the characters; the story itself was very true-to-life as well.

The story itself is just a great rollercoaster ride of fun, drama, and even comedy, with a little bit of adventure (2 chapters worth) thrown in as well. It moves fast, and yet still finds time to humanize the characters with plenty of "life moments", which are always essential to good characterization.

I was surprised, rereading the book 16 years later, at how much of it was fresh in my head, despite having only read it once as a kid. It just shows the lasting impression that one rare, truly excellent story can have on you.

I can't praise the book enough. Easily 5 stars.

[Tiffany · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't know; fifth grade wasn't too bad for me. But I loved getting ready for the fifth grade and reading about other fifth graders. Plus, Barthe DeClements once taught at the elementary school I attended, so that made the book even more special to me, especially when I, with my elementary schoolgirl enthusiasm, wrote to her and gushed about how much I loved the book, and I thought it was so cool that before she became an author, she taught at the school that I was then at. She was really nice and wrote back a lovely postcard that I cherished (and still have, too).

Anyway, good book for elementary school girls.

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

It gets two stars because it was easy to read, but I think there are much better books available that address bullying a childhood obesity. Also this book writes about so many child safety issues!!! One - a three year old sitting in the front seat of a car?! Two - children hitchhiking from a stranger and riding in the back of their truck?! Three - a grade five student staying home alone and cooking dinner and other food in the oven and on the stove?!

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great examination of middle school politics and still walks off the shelf with my 5th graders.

[Kelly · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ughhhh. So I remember this book *so clearly* from my childhood and it does NOT hold up well. Again, some of these books are good discussion starters but from the moment Elsie walks into the new classroom she's described as "fat" "gross" and "blubber." This is on page two.

While the book does eventually see the girls befriend Elsie, it's only in relation to her successful weight loss. She's so good for losing weight! She's so disciplined! Jenifer, the narrator, wonders on page 49, "I had never thought of Elsie as a human being. Just a fat girl."

The only time you get a hint of awareness is when Jenifer supposes Elsie is eating because she's hungry after getting a cup of soup, a pear and carrots for lunch. It's amazing this poor girl can do maths when she's getting nothing in her diet for a day at school.

Anyway, this book? I do not recommend. If you're curious why, go read Anti-Diet by Christy Harrison

[Jenna · Rating 1 out of 5]

Well, that's done, finally. While Jenny's one of the most unsympathetic narrators I've seen in a while; the horrible adults that surround her, including her parents, make the children's behavior understandable. Ugh. Just ugh. While Jenny does make a certain amount of improvements throughout the book, such as actually defending Elsie, she continues to describe Elsie by her weight, loss of weight, how "not so fat anymore" she is, etc. There's a faint feeling of guilt by the end of it, but it was too little, too late.

I've already terrorized my coworkers by reading out portions of this book. I don't want to spend any more time thinking about it. Let's see how the book club finds it...

[Yi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Found this book in my local little free library. Overtaken by nostalgia; took it out. Started reading it on my walk home and was shocked to see that I had either read it so many times when I was a kid that I knew way too many lines from it, or that so many lines had stuck with me as a kid. "Chapstick made our lips shiny." "Be a sport, Red." "Her legs looked like two bed pillows with the ends stuffed in shoes."

I haven't read anything else by Barthe DeClements and I don't know why. I think this book may have taught me something about friendship when I was younger. Curious to hear from anyone else who read it as a kid!

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was a bit sad seeing how many 1-star reviews this book had, when it had really resonated with me as a pre-teen. I think it was mostly because it gave me hope. A lot of people are saying how cruel the portrayal of Elsie was, but a lot of kids in my classes were a lot meaner than that. She doesn't seem to have many things thrown at her or anything. Perhaps it hasn't aged well and kids are kinder now.

If anyone's interested, I think the Jezebel review does it more justice than my dim memories of it could here - http://jezebel.com/5266091/nothings-f...

[Jennifer Neuschwander · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this several times when I was a kid...it's still good. :-)

[Lizzie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay so uh…

There are a few problematic comments about weight in this book, which is why I gave it 3 stars. It was clearly not written recently, but it’s not horrible so

This book takes place around a fifth grade girl, Jenny, and her world is shifted a little bit when an extremely overweight girl transfers into her school. Throughout the book, Jenny slowly becomes friends with the girl, Elsie, and learns to see beyond outward appearances and to the girl within. Also during the events of the book, Elsie is on a diet, and by the end she loses a lot of weight and becomes a lot happier with herself. (“I can see my toes!”).

From the beginning to the end Jenny’s view of the world changes significantly, so I wouldn’t say it’s a horrible book, and it’s not bad to read (it’s pretty light). So it does have good morals, it just also has a few very 1990s fifth-grade girl thoughts and comments.

I first read it when I was a lot younger, and I kind of discovered it in the bookshelves so it’ll always have that kind of shine of ✨ surprise new book that’s actually pretty alright ✨ but it’s not a bad read.

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like Nobodies and Somebodies by Doris Orgel, Nothing's Fair in Fifth Grade is a middle grade novel dealing with the subject of bullying among tween girls. It was originally published in 1981, and I read it for the first time sometime in the mid-1990s. Prior to my re-reading, I remembered very little of the story: just that there was a girl named Elsie, who was overweight, and who had some family problems. I was correct about this, but Elsie is not the story's main character. The story is told from the point of view of Jenifer, who isn't quite popular, but also isn't quite unpopular. At first, Jenifer is repulsed by Elsie's weight, just like the more popular girls in her class, but as she gets to know Elsie, and the difficult home life she faces, she becomes determined to befriend her and help her overcome her unhappiness.

There is a lot going on in this book that I don't think would happen in books today. For one thing, Elsie's weight is almost always mentioned in a crude manner. Kids and adults alike are disgusted by Elsie, and they think nothing of calling her fat, or asking why and how she got so fat. When contemporary books deal with weight loss, the authors tend to use more euphemisms and more sensitive language. A girl might be described as "heavy" or "having weight issues" but typically only bullies and the overweight person herself would use words like "fat" or "disgusting." I was uncomfortable at times during this book because everyone, from Elsie's mother, to her teacher, to Jenifer, to Jenifer's own parents uses the same insulting language to describe this young girl's body, even though it is so obvious the weight problem is caused by something more than just hunger or willful overeating.

I don't think we would talk about weight this way in a contemporary book, because I think we'd worry about damaging an overweight girl's self-esteem, or of giving average-sized girls more venom to use to insult the girls who don't fit in. But what got my attention is the fact that my discomfort with the way people talked about Elsie in this book inspired a sense of righteousness in me. I became indignant on Elsie's behalf, and kept pulling for Jenifer and her classmates to do the same. I never thought it was funny to laugh at Elsie's weight, and I never sided with any secondary character who laughed at her either. Though she is not the main character, Elsie grew to be my favorite character, and the one with whom I felt most comfortable sympathizing. Barthe deClements, who wrote this book based on a writing exercise she did with her own students, uses this blunt language about Elsie's weight not simply to mirror kids' behavior back to them, but to highlight how hurtful, inappropriate, and wrong it truly is. Most of the characters in this book are not role models, but what they do inspires the reader to reconsider her own behavior and to have better empathy for girls like Elsie. That's why I think this book sticks with me, when many others on the subjects of bullying and overweight kids do not. It's less politically correct and therefore more powerful.

Nothing's Fair in Fifth Grade is a great book to read with groups of girls, because it will promote discussions about they view and speak to each other. I don't think it's necessarily the right book to recommend to a young girl struggling to overcome a weight problem, or an unhappy home life, because it doesn't really focus on those issues. Instead, this is a book for those girls who stand on the sidelines and witness bullying, but who don't know how to react, or for those girls who have become bullies and need to see their behaviors through new eyes. I think it would make an especially valuable reading assignment for a mother-daughter book club or Girl Scout troop book discussion, where girls and women from different backgrounds can provide their thoughts on the issues of self-esteem, nutrition, health, and kindness to one another.

To find out what happens to Elsie later in life, also read How Do You Lose Those Ninth Grade Blues? and Seventeen and In-Between. There are also two other related books by Barthe deClements, which are set in the same universe, but follow different characters: Fourth Grade Wizards and Sixth Grade Can Really Kill You.

[Charles Shanafelt · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am a 5th grade teacher. We have a classroom set of this book in our school. Not having read it I made it an option for my students to read. 6 chose to read it. I read this book ahead of my reading group and am so glad I did. This book, written in 1981, despite all the accolades, is very dated and quite frankly, an awful read. The kids are horrible to each other. All the students call Elsie, a misunderstood overweight girl, "fatty" or "the fat girl". Even the parents of the kids consistently call her "the fat blond" or "your fat friend". The boys make fun of her throughout the entire story, and many of the girls become friends with her only because she helps them with math, and after she loses 30 pounds. The fat shaming is non-stop. Even Elsie's school threatens to kick her out of school mostly because she is supposed to be on a strict diet, yet she steals food from others, and she steals money from others so she can buy more food. At one point she isn't even allowed to participate in PE because she is "too fat". Elsie's mom hates her, but yet dotes on her thin little sister. She wants to send her away to boarding school. Even Elsie's dad, with new girlfriend in tow, stops seeing his daughter because of the way she attacked her food at dinner (with disapproving looks from the girlfriend). This is messed up.
There is also a senseless subplot where several girls hitch hike on the back of a truck. The driver doesn't take them to their intended destination, but instead drives them clear out to a secluded wooded area. The very frightened girls plan an escape by jumping off the truck at a red light. All but one escape...Elsie's little sister. The girls find a dark "Tavern" where older men stare at them and drink beer. Here they call the police. The cops come and take them to the station. The police do a search and find the truck with the little girl safe and sound. She is brought back to the station where mom blames Elsie for the supposed abduction and asks the little sister "What did that man do to you?" After all that nothing becomes of this subplot. It was all an innocent mistake and the man was only charged with a minor traffic ticket. All this had nothing to do with the rest of the story, and does nothing but scare 10 year old readers needlessly.

The ending comes quickly. The kids' teacher, an elderly woman who will be retiring at the end of the school year, has checked out mentally and obviously doesn't care too much for her students. But at the end she has a chat with Elsie's mom and convinces her to give her a second chance rather than sending her to boarding school. Woo Hoo! The boys are still nasty jerks, the girls are still snotty, but at least they aren't quite as mean to Elsie. I would not recommend this book to anyone.

[Desiree Herrera · Rating 4 out of 5]

While reading this book, I did not remember the fifth grade being this bad. Of course there was teasing and taunting going on, but I do not think it got as bad as this. I do think that this book is a good read for fifth grade girls because it shows the struggles and cattiness that sometimes does go on amongst pre-teen/teenage girls. A new girl has moved into their school, and no one seems to like her because she looks different. The first chapter is entitled "The Fat Blonde Girl," which basically sets the theme for the book. She gets picked on and has no friends because everyone feels like they cannot be friends with her because she is "fat." Especially after the events that take place once she is in their classroom, but eventually the girls come around and befriend her. I think that it is an appropriate book because one of the main characters does come around and it shows the power of friendship, and how once you accept someone for how they are you realize the good friendship you can have.

[Mimi · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't even think at the age of 10-11 I would have enjoyed this book. Being the "fat kid" myself, I found it so degrading at first. I suppose that is reality but I never heard such things in my time growing up. Perhaps I am glad that I never had to listen to those things.

I felt bad for Elsie. I felt bad that the author dumped so much crap on her life in this book. It was like she was punishing the fat kid. Maybe the author herself was the fat kid growing up?

The children are evil and cruel, more so than I ever remember growing up. The story was sweet at the end but mostly just pointless. I'm glad it only took me an hour or so to read this entire book or I would have been angry at wasting so much of my time.

[K Whatsherface · Rating 3 out of 5]

Today my cousin's daughter started 5th grade. Made me think of this book. My 4th grade teacher gave this to me at the end of the school year because we were about to be 5th grader. I remember reading it but I don't remember if I actually read it in 5th grade. I didn't remember much about it and it's short so I thought I'd be nice to do a reread

The fat shaming is something. It gets better as it goes. As Jenny gets to know Elsie. I kids really are mean. There are a few plot lines that were explored more but this is all from Jenny's POV and no one tells a child everything. Also what was the point of the hitchhiking plot? And Robin is a brat.

[E Culbertson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I remember reading this book about the time I was in fifth grade. It made me laugh out loud. Now, it made me cringe.

[Natalie Haddad · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must read book. It is about fat girl Elsie coming to the fifth grade. When Elsie comes, she is fat, lonely, sad and a thief. Jennifer and her class hate her. Then, everybody’s lunch money disappears. It turns out Elsie was the thief. But soon Jennifer realizes that Elsie isn’t what she seems. Elsie is a human being, she eats because she has nothing to do. Her parent are divorced and her mother barely cares for her. Jennifer and her friends (Diane and Sharon) help Elsie overcome her difficulties. It turns out that Elsie is a true friend. She even helps Jennifer with arithmetics. The threesome become the foursome.

[R. Rousseau · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read this book before it is so funny,scary, and awesome. I dislike the mom so much.

[Tay Orton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story with a different point of view - good lesson for students.

[Brooke Knighton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read and loved this book as a little fat girl, and I still love it as a big fat woman. 🩶

[Caroline Pennington · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really like this book!!!!!!!😂