Jake Drake, Bully Buster

Chapters 1-3 establish key characterizations. Jake Drake, the book’s narrator and protagonist, is portrayed as an upbeat, humorous, kind, and perceptive child. Jake’s positive voice is apparent from the very beginning. When he introduces himself, he notes that fourth grade is his “best grade so far” (1). He also shows his sense of humor in the epithets he creates for his bullies: “Nose Boy” (6), “King Bump” (8), “The Fist,” (9), and so on. Even though he has been the target of bullies for several years, he is not angry at or unkind toward them. When he perceptively points to feelings of inadequacy as one motive for bullying, he observes that bullies “seem” not to be smart, but he does not say that they are not smart—and this is the only comment that even approaches a criticism. He lists bullying behaviors, but he does not say negative things about the bullies themselves. This lays groundwork for the story’s messages about The Role of Empathy in Dealing with Adversaries.

Jake’s ability to accurately observe the social dynamics at school serves both to characterize him and to introduce the story’s central conflict, which is related to the theme of The Problem of Bullying at School. Although Jake does not name it as such, he has a keen sense of irony. He points out that the adults at school are supposed to be the smart ones, there to educate the students, and yet one of the toughest problems at school is the presence of bullies, and the adults leave the students to figure this out on their own. Jake’s quest to solve this problem for himself is at the core of the novel’s plot. Bullying is a challenging topic for young people, and Jake’s upbeat, humorous voice helps to create a safe environment for such a discussion.

In Chapter 2, the story’s antagonist—and Jake’s ultimate bully—is introduced. This is Link Baxter, who is immediately characterized as someone to be worried about: Jake notes Link’s size and his “bully-eyes” when he is first introduced to Mrs. Brattle’s class. The role that Jake’s expectations play in his relationship with Link is hinted at in Jake’s first reactions: Before Link has done anything at all to Jake, Jake is already making it clear he is intimidated, and he claims that he can tell “right from the start” that Link plans to bully him (15). Again, the difficult subject of bullying is made more palatable by Jake’s humorous voice as he hyperbolically lists the goals he imagines Link has, including “[making] it into the Bullies Hall of Fame” (15). Jake’s fears are not without foundation, of course—Link does immediately begin bullying him—but Jake also observes that a part of the problem is his own reaction to Link, because Link gets “inside [his] head” (18). Jake creates some of his problems on his own, without Link needing to lift a finger. In Chapter 3, Jake’s understanding that he should not let Link know that he is sensitive about Link calling him “Fake” instead of “Jake” demonstrates again that Jake knows his own reactions are feeding Link’s behavior.

One of Jake’s reactions that seems self-defeating at this point is his interest in Link’s attention. On the school bus, Jake is dismayed at the way Link turns to talk about baseball with another student and completely ignores Jake. Instead of being relieved at the reprieve from Link’s intimidation, Jake focuses on the loss of connection. This demonstrates how important social connections are to Jake and how much he really wants to be liked by others. These feelings are easy for someone like Link to manipulate, which makes Jake vulnerable to bullying. Jake also demonstrates The Importance of Friendship and Support in his life when he takes time in Chapter 1 to introduce Pete and Willie to the reader. Despite the fact that Jake’s fourth-grade experiences are essentially just a narrative frame for the flashback to second grade that occurs in Chapter 2, Jake describes both Pete’s and Willie’s experiences in fourth grade, as well. These two friends are clearly very important to Jake. Later in the novel, it will become clear that this apparent vulnerability of Jake’s—his eagerness to be liked and his strong connection to his friends—is actually a source of strength and a key factor in the resolution of the book’s central conflict.

As is often the case in chapter books written for younger readers, the story is structured with cliffhanger-style chapter endings that create tension and suspense and drive the narrative forward. Chapter 1 ends with a teaser about the “Certified, Grade A, SuperBully” that Jake encountered in second grade (11). Jake explains how this encounter changed his life and turned him into “Jake Drake, Bully-Buster,” but he does not name the bully or explain why the encounter was so momentous, creating suspense for Chapter 2. Chapter 2 resolves this suspense by introducing Link, but it ends on a tense note of its own when Jake says that he has a bad feeling that Link’s bullying is going to get worse: “And I was right,” the chapter concludes (18). This creates questions about what terrible things Link might be about to do. Chapter 3 demonstrates how the bullying continues and ends with Jake’s dramatic statement that “Something [is] going to have to change” (23). This again propels the narrative forward by provoking questions about what will change—and how.