Amazon Author site Category:  Action/Thriller Publisher: Tigress Press ISBN-10:  0979385709 Type: Fiction Pages: 224 Copyright: April 2007 ISBN-13: 9780979385704 Benson Schmidt is tired of being a dreg, low man on the social totem pole. But when he and his best friend Ryan develop a project for their 7th grade publications class to show the popular kids the fragile nature of social expectations, it backfires in the worst way possible, putting them on the Columbine map. I began Dregs in March of 1998, still a year before the tragedy that made Columbine High School synonymous with school violence. Within five months, there would be fatal shootings at Pearl, Mississippi; Jonesboro, Arkansas; and Paducah, Kentucky. This rash of violence horrified and enlightened me. For all the victims, not only those who lost their lives but also those who suffered the daily put-downs that left no perceived out other than violence, this story is for you. The vicious cycle of clique superiority can only be broken if adults expect the same behavior from all kids, even those who excel in sports. Hopefully, Dregs will help make teachers, parents, and students aware that cliques in schools have lasting effects. For information, go to www.dontteasehotline.org  To anyone out there who thinks this could happen to you or this could be you, please get help. Visit: http://youthviolence.edschool.virginia.edu/bullying/bullying-links.html Parents, more information exists to help identify the problem and/or recognize the signs: www.myoutofcontrolteen.com Excerpt If I could rank my life on a scale of 1-10, I’d have to resort to negative numbers. Mrs. Mattingly, this journal writing for your class isn’t such a bad thing, because today SUCKED.

Harry Potter Site
Dregs
Written by Webmaster
Friday, 14 September 2007
Lauren Smith: What is your book about?

Barri L. Bumgarner: Dregs is about cliques and how much pressure there is for junior high kids to fit in. And Benson and Ryan, two seventh graders who are at the bottom of the social structure, realize that popularity is fragile and the ladder weakest at the top. They develop a plan to show everyone that being popular isn't all it's cracked up to be. What happens as a result shatters everyone's preconceptions.

Lauren Smith: What inspired you to write this story?

Barri L. Bumgarner: I started teaching at Oakland Junior High only a few months after the epidemic of school violence hit Paducah, KY; Jonesboro, AR; and Springfield, OR. So when my first year students were consumed with worry about why this had to happen, I began writing Dregs. I finished it in March 1999, about 25 days before the horrible tragedy at Columbine. I realized this story needed to be told, but in a strange way, I felt guilty for having written it (and then for Columbine to happen), so I put the book in a box and didn't open it until 2004. After having successfully published 2 adult novels, I felt compelled to be part of the solution. I had no idea it would come out 4 days after the worst single day shooting in the U.S. (Virginia Tech). Lauren Smith: How tough was it writing in the Young Adult market?

Barri L. Bumgarner: Not at all. I taught a Reading Workshop class with ~1500 young adult novels in it, so I'd read all the hot books on the market, had learned to "pitch" the books to teenagers, and I knew what they liked. Because of them, I knew the language, the needs, and the horrible pressure of being a teenager in today's world. When I was finished, I felt I'd written exactly what they were wanting to read.

Lauren Smith: This book addresses a very important topic, what do you hope this book accomplishes?

Barri L. Bumgarner: I've made a documentary about Dregs, and at the end, I've added, "If this book helps just one kid, makes a difference to just one teenager, then it's one child closer to breaking the cycle." In my mind, that's a book's success...not sales, but impact. At a middle school last week, I was speaking to over 100 eighth graders. One boy said, "This book made me realize how hard it is for kids who don't have a lot of friends. So I invited a boy to sit with the soccer guys at lunch Monday. He usually sits by himself." I made a point of letting him know the courage that must've taken and that leading by example is the greatest single thing a teenager can do. He said he'd do it again the next day...it gave me chills.

Lauren Smith: What are some things parents can do to help their teens through the challenges of teen pressure?

Barri L. Bumgarner: Oh, there are so many things...First and foremost, parents need to recognize the signs of teasing and bullying. If their son or daughter displays any of the tendencies of "making fun" of other kids, parents MUST address it. Even the smallest taunts can leave a lasting impression. Also, if you think your son or daughter is the one being teased, talk openly about the insecurities the "teaser" must have. Bullies are usually so completely terrified of being exposed as scared, weak, and fragile. There are numerous websites parents can access, but the key is to talk. Stop using phrases like, "Well, if he hits you, hit him back!" Do parents really believe violence solves anything? Probably not, but some parents don't know any better. Education is the key to solving most issues, but especially bullying. Also teach your children the difference between "tattling" and "telling."



Author reviews Dregs
Dregs by Barri Bumgarner is a well crafted, fast-paced novel that everyone should read. It tells the story of cliques, false popularity, peer pressure, and the over-importance of sports in junior and senior high schools that can lead to fatal shootings.
Having taught in the public schools Bumgarner knows what she writes about. I’m guessing that she is the model for Mrs. Mattingly, the favorite teacher in the novel.
Benson, a seventh grader who likes school, not only has to follow his popular, athletic older brother, but is largely ignored by his very busy and successful parents who dote on his brother. He must endure the snubs and slurs of classmates because, though good at both, he likes academic work better than sports.
He and his best friend work on a project for communications class to interview students to see what makes a teenager popular and who made the rules. Whether the project initiated it or not, events in Benson’s junior high school escalate to a school shooting.
Perhaps the best thing about this book, is that the protagonist did not join the popular kids in the end, though he could have. He kept his own self-worth and ideals without becoming part of the “popular,” sports-minded group of jocks and cheerleaders. Most portrayals of teens, whether in books or movies, end up with the protagonist giving in to the pressure. From my own experience and through my own teaching, some students do have enough self-worth to stick to their ideals, even though peers, teachers, parents, and the public push them into conforming.
The novel shows that the kids aren’t the problem. Society is. Schools are for academics, yet those who excel there are often belittled, ostracized, and punished—unless they also happen to be good athletes.
Everyone should read this book. Something must be done.



~Reviewed by Ellen Gray Massey, Author


Fantasy author Barbara Hodges
Barri Bumgarner’s novel Dregs is a story right from today’s headlines. Younger readers will recognize the happy times and the painful events Bumgarner writes about. For older readers, it brings back the sometimes unwanted reminders of the teen years. Who reading this didn’t have one or two times during their teen years when they just didn’t fit in?
Ryan and Benson are two seventh grade boys at Westwood High School. Neither boy fits in…Ryan because of his nerdy appearance and high I.Q., and Benson, who is rebelling against the expectations of being the clone of an older brother who is just too dang good at everything.
Ryan uses humor to gloss over his feeling of being a square peg in a school full of round holes, or round-hole wanna-bes, and it’s Ryan who comes up with the name “Dregs” for those who just don’t quite fit at any of the socially branded tables in the school lunch-room.
For their Publications class, Ryan and Benson are assigned the task of interviewing some of Westwood’s students. Benson sees it as a chance to excel at something his older brother, Chris, had never done before. Ryan just thinks it would be fun to jerk some chains. This is their chance to let the world know everyone is an equal, even at Westwood, and that having the right clothes or dating the quarterback did not make you better then someone else.
The two boys set out to ask some tough questions. If you weren’t a cheerleader, would you still be liked? If you got hurt and couldn’t play football, would you still have all the same friends? Simple questions…meant to open some eyes…but when the wrong person is forced to find out the answers…the repercussions are more than the two boys ever dreamed of.
Bumgarner’s story is gripping, even shocking. She’s not afraid to touch on some tough subjects – drugs, abuse and even rape. But Dregs does show that even the smallest steps taken to encourage free-thinking can bring about life-altering events.
I highly recommend this book. I don’t think you will be disappointed.



~Reviewed by Barbara M. Hodges
Author of the Daradawn Series
http://barbarahodges.gobot.com