• Age: 13 to 17
• Grade: 8 to 12
• Reading age: 13 to 17

When a well-meaning English teacher has overweight student Krista read aloud a poem about body image titled "Barbie Doll" in class, she ignites a simmering bullying event based on Krista's appearance. Krista's best friend, and witness to the event, Tessa, is suspended for fighting to defend her friend. The girl who bullies Krista seems unaffected by the incident at school and more concerned with what an older guy thinks of her. But as the three characters' paths intersect, their inner lives are revealed. Each emerges as a much more complicated individual than their simple bully, target, and witness labels.

Lori Weber is the author of eight young adult novels, including Yellow Mini, a novel in verse, and Deep Girls, a short—story collection; one historical middle grade novel, Lightning Lou; and one picture book, My Granny Loves Hockey. A native Montrealer, she lived for several years in Atlantic Canada; upon returning to Montreal, she began teaching English at Vanier College in 1994 before moving to John Abbott College in 1996, a position she recently retired from. She has delivered workshops in writing for teens through the Quebec Writers' Federation. Lori currently lives in Dorval, Quebec, where she hopes to do more writing, taking inspiration from the beautiful Lac Saint Louis at her doorstep.

Lori Weber's profile page

"This is a thoughtful and nuanced story that explores issues of bullying and identity. I appreciated that the story is narrated from multiple perspectives, which gives the reader an understanding of the complexities of each character's experiences."

Educator at the University of Pennsylvania, Graduate School of Education

"The characters' unhappiness and hopes will resonate with many readers."

Kirkus Review

"This book hit me hard. It is so simple and honest that every word Weber writes hits the reader like a bell."

Just This Teenager

"The three narrators of Lori Weber's new novel Picture Me, are as smart, sassy, and insightful as thirteen-year-olds can be."

Montreal Review of Books

"Picture Me takes what might otherwise have been a predictable issue-driven novel about bullying and adds interest by having each chapter switch between a trio of narrative voices: the bully (Chelsea), the victim (Krista), and the victim's friend (Tessa). Despite differing priorities and family lives, the three middle-school girls are all striving for control in a world in which they are relatively powerless."

Quill & Quire

"Picture Me opens with a classroom recitation of Marge Piercy's classic poem "Barbie Doll," which leads to a bullying incident that will have a butterfly effect on the lives of three teenage girls...Each girl narrates her own story as body image consciousness exacts its own unique toll on these three young lives."

Assembly on Literature for Adolescents of the NCTE

"Whether used as a read aloud in Literature Circles, or for reluctant readers, this engaging, contemporary novel provides rich opportunities for discussions about bullying, friendship, body image, and families. Uncomplicated in structure and length, yet engaging in its subject matter and varying points of view, it would be suitable for grades 7-12."

TEACH Magazine

"High school girls, cliques, and cruelty are intricately linked in this thoughtful and sad novel. As the story unfolds from the points of view of Krista, Tessa, and Chelsea we can see the they are all victims in some way."

M. McGuire, Middle School Teacher