Nennt mich nicht Ismael!

Ishmael Leseur #1

by Michael Gerard Bauer

Hausaufgaben, Mobbing, Liebeskummer - mal abgesehen von diesen üblichen Schulproblemen trifft Ismael ein besonderes Schicksal: Sein Vorname macht ihn zum Gespött der Mitschüler. Zu allem Übel kann sein Vater nicht oft genug betonen, wie ihn die Lektüre von Moby Dick auf diesen Namen gebracht hat. Ismaels Reaktion: Abtauchen! Das ändert sich, als James Scobie in die Klasse kommt. Er hat seine ganz eigene Waffe gegen Klassenrowdys: die Sprache. James gründet einen Debattierclub. Auch Ismael soll mitmachen. Doch der hat panische Angst. Wären da nicht seine Debattier-Kollegen, würde das vermutlich auch so bleiben. Mit Hilfe ihres Einsatzes steht Ismaels verbalem Aufstand bald aber nichts mehr im Wege. Und die Tür für ein Gespräch mit der bezaubernden Kelly Faulkner ist so offen wie nie ...

Genres: Young Adult, School, Fiction, Humor, Contemporary, Read For School, High School

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Michael Gerard Bauer was born and lives in Brisbane Australia. In 2000 he resigned from his full-time position as an English/Economics teacher to pursue his dream of becoming a writer.

In 2004 his first YA novel The Running Man was published to great acclaim. It subsequently won the 2005 Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Book of the Year for Older Readers and was short-listed for the NSW, Victoria and South Australian State Premiers’ Literary awards.

In 2008 the German translation of The Running Man was short-listed for the German Youth Literature Prize and won the German Catholic Children’s and Young People’s Book Prize. In 2014 it was short-listed for the Prix Farniente in Belgium. In 2009 the Italian translation of The Running Man was a finalists for the “Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Cento” Prize.

In 2007 his second novel, a ‘laugh out loud’ comedy entitled Don’t Call Me Ishmael! was short-listed in both the CBCA awards and the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards and won the 2007 Children’s Peace Literature Award and the 2008 South Australian Festival Award for Children’s Literature. It was also included in the 2007 White Ravens selection for Outstanding International Books for children and young adults. Its sequel Ishmael and the Return of the Dugongs was a 2008 CBCA Notable book. The final book in the trilogy Ishmael and the Hoops of Steel and was released in July 2011. It was shortlisted for the 2012 CBCA Book of the Year for Older Readers.

Michael’s other books include, Dinosaur Knights a 2010 CBCA Notable Book described as ‘an original and adrenalin-pumping adventure’, You Turkeys! an illustrated chapter book, part of the Scholastic Mates series for early readers, and Just a Dog which was named Honour Book in the 2011 CBCA awards in the Younger Readers category and won the 2011 Queensland Premier's award for best Children's Book.

Michael has also written a series of three humorous books for younger readers: Eric Vale Epic Fail; (BILBY Award Winner 2014; KOALA Honour Book 2014) Eric Vale Super Male; (CBCA Notable Book 2014) and Eric Vale Off the Rails (Selected as one of the 2013 GET READING 50 Books You Can't Put Down). The books are fully illustrated by Michael's son Joe who as well as being a talented artist is an amazing young film-maker and along with his wife Rita Artmann make up Artspear Entertainment the creators of the extremely popular TOON SANDWICH film trailer spoofs on You Tube.  Joe also created the trailer for Eric Vale Epic Fail.

The first of spin-off series from the Eric Vale books Secret Agent Derek 'Danger' Dale: The Case of Animals Behaving Really REALLY Badly came out in July 2014. Two other Derek Dale action adventures The Case of the Really REALLY Scary Things and The Case of the Really REALLY Magnetic Magnetic have now been released.

In May 2016 the YA comedy The Pain, My Mother, Sir Tiffy, Cyber Boy and Me was released. Michael's first picture book Rodney Loses It! illustrated by Chrissie Krebs was published in September 2017. It won the 2018 CBCA Award in the Early Readers category as well as the 2018 Speech Therapy Award. His most recent YA book The Things That Will Not Stand won the 2019 Prime Minister's Award in the YA category and was a White Ravens selection

These days Michael is a full-time writer. His books are widely set as school texts and he is in high demand for talks and workshops at schools and Festivals around Australia. He has also enjoyed three very successful visits to Indonesia as a Writer in Residence at the Jakarta International School (2007 and 2008) and the British International School (2008). As well he has visited the American community School in Abu Dhabi (2012) and spent three weeks at schools in Southern China. In 2010 Michael was one of the guest authors at the White Ravens International Children’s and Youth Literature Festival in Munich Germany and in 2012 he was invited to the Edinburgh Writers festival.

Michael’s books are curre

Reviews

[Vic · Rating 1 out of 5]

Words can not describe how much I did not like this book.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

“One of the Beatles had just fallen out of my pants.
I was pretty sure it was Ringo.”


A conversation.A heated debate.

Jo -So, I really enjoyed this book. It was full of colourful characters, hilarious dialogue and ridiculous (and fun!) situations, this book will definitely appeal to middle-grade readers. However I couldn’t help but think that there were some jokes that went on a bit longer than they should of. I imagine my face was similar to the face I pull when my granddad, my colourful colourful granddad, tells me his only-slightly offensive jokes.
I laugh loudly at first…. But then he collars me when I’m on my way to brew up and he tells it me again, with slightly different wording.
They’re still very charming but on occasion they wore a bit thin.
Interrupting Jo Who Understands That This Book Was Written For Readers Aged 8-12 - Pfft, like you know anything.
Jo - I...I’m sorry?
IJWKTTBWWFRAET Jo 2-Well… no disrespect, Jo, but you are not supposed to be reading this book.
Jo -I… um. But I’m a book reviewer?
Jo 2 - Mr Bauer didn’t write it for people like you.
Jo - Wait just one second. He didn’t write it for girls? Is that what you’re saying? Just because it’s set in an all-boys school and mentions footie and rugby and boobs. That’s pretty sexist and I-
Jo 2-No, you’re old.
Jo- What?
Jo 2- You’re old.
Jo- I’m 22!
Jo 2- This book was written for 8-12 year olds. You have 10 years on them. Therefore you are old.
Jo- I… uhm. Anyway, as I was saying, Ishmael is a fourteen year old boy who attends an all-boys school and a lot of humour stemmed from this. Now I went to an all-girls school so therefore missed the delight of boyish pranks. Like insects…
Jo 2- And arachnids.
Jo- *sigh* And arachnids in desks? *shudders*
I’m so glad all I had to deal with was bitchy pleasant girls who talked non-stop about boys, Hooch coats, how if you did your work you were a geek homework and Blazin’ Squad. I loved most of the characters too. Ishmael was a delight and his complaints about his name never got old. And that bit with the peg? I’m pretty sure my ‘man-laugh’ came out at that point.
Also, I had a lot of time for Mr Scobie (although I wish we’d had more time with you!), he was absolutely hilarious and a very sweet character.
Also a badass.
I really loved the connection between these boys and, even though a lot of the jokes went over my head, a lot of their banter really made me giggle. Some of the characters were a little grating, but I won’t go into that.
Jo 2- Wimp.
Jo- What?
Jo 2- “Some of the characters were grating”. You won’t go into that? I’ve read your past reviews. You love going into things like that. Go on, who “grated” on you?
Jo - Not that I have to explain myself to you but even though he was extremely charming and sometimes he was funny, I wasn’t the biggest fan of The Razzman. Like I said, I missed the part of watching boys stumble wildly through their pre-pubescent years but there were some things he said that just didn’t seem right. But “the website of luuuuuurve”… do boys talk like that? I don’t-
Jo 2-  Of course boys talk like that. Have you never heard them all yelling and chattering when you accidentally get on the bus that all the lads from the all-boys school get on
Jo - Umm… no not really. I tend to put my headphones in. Volume on loud. And make plans to book in some driving lessons.
Jo 2- Exactly! So what do you know about how boys talk?
Jo - Well… err, I guess, I don’t.
Jo 2- Exactly. I rest my case.
Jo - Um… where was I? Oh yeah, and this could be because I’ve never seen any of the Star Wars films or the Lord of the Rings, but a lot of the jokes in this book were SW and LotRs related. Maybe if I had seen them I would have found this book even more humorous.
Jo 2- But 8-12 year old boys have seen them and they love them and I actually caught you sniggering at a few of the jokes.
“Like a light sabre through butter”
You practically wet yourself.
Jo- I…um. Well that bit was funny. Shut up. Anyway, I also wished we’d spent more time with Ishmael and Kelly.
Jo 2- Ew.
Jo - What now?!?
Jo 2- Well, she’s a girl. 8-12 year old boys don’t want to read about girls and glittery unicorns and flying princesses…
Jo- There aren't actually any glittery unicorns or flying princesses in this book…. unfortunately.
Jo 2- ….so why would they want to read a book with more chapters about girls when it’s not relevant to the story? Mr Bauer did a brilliant job in portraying the infatuation a 14 year old boy gets when he has a crush on a girl. It was sweet and it was cute and she likes him because he’s her superhero.
This book is about friendship, standing up for what is right and learning to be yourself, no matter who you are. It has a fantastic and accessible message which will have a lot of resonance with boys (and girls!) who have ever felt left out and how it is OK to be different.
Also, there were boob jokes.
Ugh, yeah go on. Let me hear what you have to say about that part. Climb up on your soapbox and let it all out about how it demeaned women and that jokes that objectify women are the lowest form of wit.
Jo - I think that’s sarcasm…
Jo 2-I bet you have loads to say about that boob jokes bit. That just has “Jo Disapproves of This and Everything” stamped all over it.
Jo - I actually loved that part. I thought it was written with a lot of humour but also gave us a greater insight on the characters. Especially Scobie. Not many writers could accomplish that but Mr Bauer did and he did so with flying colours.
And who doesn’t love a good boob joke?
Jo 2- No one.
Jo - Well there you go. Can I get back to my review now?
Jo 2- Whatever.
Jo- In conclusion, while there were some parts of this book that I didn’t completely love…
Jo 2- Because you’re twenty two... and a girl.
Jo - *sigh* ... I would not hesitate in recommending it to anyone who is looking for a book to capture the attention their son/brother/nephew. It’s full of humour, great characters and hilarious situations that will have you sniggering here there and everywhere.


I received a copy of this book from the publishers.

You can read this review and lots of other exciting things on my blog here.

[Miranda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this immensely from start to finish. The plot was by no means unconventional but the writing was so fantastic that I hardly noticed. The narrator's 'voice' was so vivid and he told his story with such a dramatic, humorous, theatrical flourish that you felt like his troubles with the school bully and insecurities about girls and public speaking were bigger news than WWII.
I immediately guessed that the writer was a high school teacher, and sure enough, a quick check of the 'about the author' section proved me right - you can always tell, I think. Teachers spend most of their day with teenagers, so when they write about teenagers they get their characters spot on. Nothing jars, you never find yourself thinking "no real 14-year-old would say/do that!".

[Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fantastic novel written to almost disturbing accuracy of the life and troubles of a teenager. Better yet, it was based right here in Australia, so this character was even more relatable. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, even if the joy of reading it only lasted two days. I hope this book reaches other teenagers who can also look at this book and go, "Hey, I have someone like that in my class!" Lots of fun and would recommend to teenagers specifically, but also parents so they may better understand the issues their son may have to face daily, and exactly why they should be excused from chores and homework.

[Inga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audiobook Rezension:
Das von Jens Wawrczeck großartig gelesene Hörbuch Nennt mich nicht Ismael erzählt die Geschichte eines Jungen in der neunten Klasse, der seinen Vornamen - Ismael - unerträglich findet. Schuld daran ist hauptsächlich einer seiner Mitschüler, von dem er andauernd drangsaliert und provoziert wird, ein klarer Fall von Mobbing.
Dabei ist Ismael durchaus selbstironisch in seiner Melodramatik, mit der er seine Verzweiflung über seinen Namen äußert, er sieht aber keinerlei Möglichkeit an seiner Situation etwas zu ändern. Hilfe kommt von außen - als erstes in Form einer jungen, scharfsinnigen Deutschlehrerin, die den Klassenpeiniger sofort erkennt und entlarvt, und zweitens in Form eines neuen seltsamen Mitschülers namens James Scoobie. Letzterer wird selbst sofort zur Zielscheibe, weiß sich aber durch seine sprachliche Überlegenheit zu helfen.
Als die Deutschlehrerin einen Debattierclub (eine durchaus übliche AG in den USA) ins Leben ruft, findet sich Ismael plötzlich an der Seite von Scoobie und einige anderen Misfits in einer neuen Situation - er ist nicht mehr allein mit seinen Problemen. Mit Hilfe seiner neuen Freunde stellt er sich seinen Ängsten und als einer von ihnen zur neuen Zielscheibe des Mobbers wird, schwört er Rache...

Was dieses Buch von anderen seiner Art abhebt, ist der durchgehend witzig, locker-leichte Erzählton. Zwar leidet Ismael unter den Drangsalierungen, verzweifelt an seiner eigenen Unzulänglichkeit und Hilflosigkeit, alldem ein Ende zu bereiten, aber durch die Selbstironie, mit der er diese Dinge an sich selbst erkennt und schildert, wird das Buch niemals schwermütig oder mitleidheischend. Ismael ist ein glaubhafter Protagonist, mit Schwächen und Stärken. Er trifft richtige und falsche Entscheidung, ist erfolgreich und scheitert ebenso oft. Jens Wawrczeck setzt den Charakter äußert überzeugend um, so dass man beim Hören oft laut auflachen muss.
Zudem war es interessant, Ismaels Aussöhnung mit seinem Namen und seinem literarischen Hintergrund Moby Dick mitzuverfolgen, gegen Ende des Buches liest er Melvilles Roman und stellt fest, dass er zwar "nicht Ismael" ist, aber dass Moby Dick eine große Geschichte ist. Die eingestreuten Zitate sind ein weiteres Plus und ermöglichen Bezüge zur Erzählung.
Nennt mich nicht Ismael von Michael Gerard Bauer ist ein erfreulich gutes und gut geschriebenes Buch zum Thema Mobbing und eine tolle Coming-of-Age Geschichte, lesenswert, besonders in der Audiobook-Fassung.

[Tinka · Rating 2 out of 5]

So, I have never heard about this book before, but the kid I‘m tutoring has to read it for class which means I have to read it too. And hey, being a teacher myself I always look for new books to use in class as well.

The story is about 14 year old Ishmael Leseur, names after the narrator of Herman Melville‘s Moby Dick who is a victim of frequent bullying, because of his unusual name. Ishmael goes to an all-boys school and why he relatively smart and quick-witted, he mostly keeps to himself, to not attract more attention of resident bully, Barry Bagsley. This changes with two new arrivals at school. Ishmael‘s new English teachers, Miss Tarango, who loves language and stands up to Barry Bagsley, and James Scobie, a new student, brain tumor survivor and seemingly fearless boy, who forms a debate team which Ishmael eventually joins. Together with a group of other misfits they compete in a debate competition against other schools.

It does sound better than it actually is. If I had to choose a term for this book, it would probably be "well-intentioned Snoozefest." Because the intention to teach kids about bullying and how powerful language can be is obviously great, but it the execution is just not that compelling.

While Ishmael‘s inner voice has its sassy moments, it is slightly over-written. My tutor kid (same age as Ishmael) frequently complained that he just doesn’t sound like a kid, in fact none of these kids do and more like an adult trying to guess how kids would behave, and frankly I agree with him. Personally I‘d add that the characters are also quite stereotypical and not that interesting to begin with. It feels a bit like a 90s movie, you know all those ones about misfit groups that rise to the occasion and prove themselves and win over the bullies with the power of friendship, but it misses the fun part of a lot of those.

Not much happens. And for a book that wants to make a point out of the power of language, it really doesn’t use language all that well. Especially the debates are more mentioned that actually shown, a lot plot points are just skipped over in favor of less interesting bits. And I know "show not tell" can be a hard thing to achieve in books, but really, more showing less glancing over please.

Tutor Kid also mentioned the point of the bullying in the book and that he thinks it isn’t authentic to him, which is an interesting point. He said that Ishmael doesn’t feel like a name someone would make fun of and that this takes away from the main issue of the book and that Barry Bagsley is so lame (his words, not mine) that no one would take him seriously.

Bullying comes in many different form and I do think enough kids are made fun of because of their names, I do slightly agree with him. My main grip however is how the topic was generally handled. It’s also very surface level. The lesson for Ishmael in the end is very well that taking revenge on bullies is wrong, but Barry still gets away with his antics more or less. Yes, I know that also happens in real life but the book also supports the message that adults are pretty useless (apart from Miss Tarango in the beginning) and that opening up to them won’t change anything which is a very conflicting message at best.

What I did enjoy is the slow process of bonding between Ishmael and his teammates. Especially James Scobie was mostly a delight to read about. Unfortunately he disappears during the last parts of the book, being more or less a treated as a plot device for Ishmael.

I didn’t hate this book, but I also really didn’t buy into it or cared enough. As a teacher I wouldn’t use it in class. I know my kids would be bored and there are more refreshing books, some that feel less like "recommended for school," that deal with similar topics.

[Addi · Rating 2 out of 5]

~Es ist ein Buch was süß und lustig geschrieben wurde, mich aber nicht in den Bann gezogen hat die anderen Teile zu lesen...
~ Das Buch handelt trotzdem von sehr wichtigen Themen, weshalb ich es nicht als Zeitverschwendung oder sonstiges sehen würde
~Empfehlenswert für Menschen die gerne Bücher lesen die von : Mobbing, Liebe, Freundschaften und Ängsten handeln

~Nicht empfehlenswert für die, die lieber Bücher lesen, welche nicht witzig geschrieben wurden und die lieber Bücher lesen wo es hart aber deutlich verfasst wurde.

[greta · Rating 5 out of 5]

immer wieder absolut grandios und berührend. die liebe die ich für dieses buch habe, ist schwer zu beschreiben.

[Henry Moss · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Don't Call Me ISHMAEL' is a good book and I enjoyed reading through it. The book was good because at the end of most chapters it had a little comment that made you want to keep reading. These included things like 'But I was wrong' which always made me want t read one more page. The book has some humourous points that made me chuckle in a happy manner. The characters are believeable and you actually start to generate feelings for them which is always a good thing for any reader. Overall I enjoyed this book and I gave it a score of 3 out of 5 stars.
Yours Sincerely
Henry Moss

[Kathy Lane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love laughing aloud and being taken by surprise by a story. The emotions and character reactions felt authentic. Ishmael is captivating for young and no longer young readers. It may help to know the premise of Moby Dick to catch some inside jokes, but not critical to have read that classic tale. Follow Ishmael's story as he navigates bullies and a new school, while finding his people and himself.

[Shane · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pleasant read, with many of the familiar themes of early high school life. I really enjoyed the character of James Scobie and think many people could learn a lot from the way he conducts himself. A very sweet book that I think any late primary to early high school child would enjoy. I will seek out the sequel.

[Lillian (hiatus) · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really didn’t like this book at all. I did read it in german which is not a good idea and i had to read it for school but still it was a book that went completely against feminism and i know that yes a lot of boys think that way but calling a girl “not perfect because she has small breasts” is just not ok. The writing was partly ok so ⭐️⭐️

[Megan G · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is SO funny. So many things happen the you might even blush on what happen to Ishmael. There's also so many parts that you are/would fall to the ground laughing. This book is amazing and no doubt recommend it to all of my friends and family and everybody else.

[Mayor · Rating 1 out of 5]

Lame

[notasf1 · Rating 2 out of 5]

2/5⭐️
Wurde von der Schule gezwungen das zu lesen, hab das nur auf goodreads gemacht damit meine Anzahl höher wird hehehe.

[maya · Rating 1 out of 5]

It is so bad I want to give you a zero but that’s not possible so I give you a one

[Emma · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5*
Some enjoyable moments but also some very problematic content that makes me so mad - namely the relegation of female characters to hot teacher, hot blonde, and red t-shirt. See also: “Asian voice” in writing. Really ruined a promising book.

[MemeBookseater · Rating 2 out of 5]

S

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

It hurt me, a lot...

[Isi 📖💜 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Als Schullektüre ganz in Ordnung, da man Themen wie Mobbing , Freundschaft und Anderssein aufgreifen kann. Die Schüler fanden es auch in Ordnung, aber definitiv kein Must-Read.

[Aurelia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Docela dobrá kniha pro děcka, jsem to musela přečíst na pedagogiku cause je to o šikaně.

[Emma Straub · Rating 2 out of 5]

.

[Ella Tesch · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5
Considering that it was a book for school it was pretty decent

[Viktoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ismael hasst seinen Namen und wird anscheinend aufgrund seines Namens immer wieder von einem Jungen seiner Klasse gehänselt. Ismael hat die beste Technik herausbekommen, dem aus dem Weg zu gehen, nämlich indem er sich so unsichtbar wie nur möglich macht. Das geht aber nicht mehr, als ein neuer Mitschüler in die Klasse kommt, der Ismael auch noch in seinem Debattierclub haben will...
Ein witziges Buch, dass Mut machen möchte, gegen Mobbing vorzugehen und für Zivilcourage einzutreten. Klingt jetzt sehr hochtrabend, kitschig und ernst, aber der Roman ist alles andere! Sehr witzig und überhaupt nicht zu didaktisch. Der Erzähler (Ismael selbst) hat zu seinem Erzählten einen guten Abstand, der es ihm zulässt ironische Kommentare zu machen. Guter Schachzug des Autoren, dadurch kann man den Gedankengängen der Hauptfigur wunderbar folgen und die Peinlichkeiten spürt man manchmal schmerzhaft mit. Doch durch die Distanz des Erzählers wird hier nie auf die Tränendrüse oder auf einen "Mitleidsknopf" gedrückt.

[James Purkis Purkis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am reluctant to criticize YAF because it is not aimed at my reading level. The character of Ishmael is engaging in his own self defeatist attitudes and his cast of school yard enemies and weird friends surpass being simply caricatures. The plot is not over predictable and the action never gets bogged down for too long in any one scene. This lends the book an easy going feel that made it a pleasure to keep reading. My main criticism would be the message about bullying and the melodramatic nature of Ishmael that seemed a bit forced at times.

[Michelle · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was one of my school texts last year. I didn't enjoy it at all. Everything about it annoyed me and it was just a waste of my time. Usually when i finish a book i feel like i've taken something from it, but when i finished this all i could think was thank goodness its over, i hope i never have to read that again. i wouldn't feed this to my dog. :p

[Jamestasmanbones]

i thought that this book was a good book and very enjoyable to read, it was a book that could be great to read for all ages but especially for teenages or people that have started at a new school. The book focuses alot on bullying and how to cope with bullying. i really enjoyed reading this book and i would like to read the next one.

[Sarah Waters · Rating 4 out of 5]

The start of this book didn't grab me but after seeing its rating and reading reviews I persisted and I'm glad i did! Really enjoyed getting to know the main character and the introduction of James Scobie was a highlight for me. Would have loved to have had his character throughout the book. This book would promote a lot of discussion, especially in regards to bullying. Great mature read!

[Trelawney · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't really capture my attention. And I don't understand. The story was supposed to be about how he gets teased because he had a funny name but there was a kid name Ignatius and there was another kid with a stranger name... can't remember it now.

[Linda Wrobleski · Rating 5 out of 5]

So very, very funny in parts. So touching in other parts. An excellent examination of bully behavior and how several people deal with the bully. After I read it, I read it out loud to my husband and we both really enjoyed it! Wish this author had more books!!!