Module 6
February 22 -28

Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key
By Jack Gantos

Gantos, Jack. Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key. 1998. Farrar, Straus, and Giroux. ISBN: 0064408337

Synopsis:
Joey Pigza can’t seem to stay still in class. He can’t remember to follow the rules. His teacher, Mrs. Maxy, reminds him to follow the classroom rules, but he can’t seem to stay still. He has lived with his grandmother, but then his mother comes home to live with him. His mother has high expectations for Joey and takes him to the doctor. However, sometimes the medicine works and sometimes it doesn’t. When Joey hurts a student at school accidentally, he is sent to an alternative school to try to help him. Joey is able to begin to make better choices and get medicine to help with the fact that he can’t seem to stay still or focus. Joey goes back to school and realizes that he can do well at the end.

National Book Award Finalist

My View of the World:
This is a fantastic view into the world of a student with severe attention deficit disorder. The narrator of the book is Joey Pigza, and the chaotic pace of the narration reflects his state of mind. This is a wonderful book for teachers and students because its insight should help produce understanding among others. It is easy to see how Joey feels and to have sympathy for him. This is a must for all teachers.

Book Reviews:
You will groan and wince, but not want to stop listening to John Gantos' fast-paced narration of Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key (FS&G, 1998). Joey Pigza is wired, just like his father and his grandmother. When Joey was in kindergarten, his father left and his mother followed, leaving Joey to live with his abusive grandmother. His mother is back now, and he knows she loves him and wants him to be good. Joey explains in his own voice that his medication does not last through the day, and even though he tries to follow the rules, bad things happen, like swallowing his key, sharpening his finger in a pencil sharpener and running amuck during a class trip to an Amish farm. Gantos' lively and highly emotional voice brings the supporting characters to life by adequately distinguishing them from one another, as Joey describes all of the ups and down of his days at school. Joey is fortunate to have the support of many caring adults in the Lancaster County school system. They understand that he has Attention Deficit Disorder and lead Joey and his mother toward positive solutions to his problems. There is an author's epilogue in which he describes what events led him to write the book. Listeners will empathize with Joey and his trials and tribulations, while rejoicing at his wonderful zest for life.-Jo-Ann Carhart - February 1, 2000, School Library Journal.

Joey Pigza, who lives with his hyperactive grandmother, understands that he's also "wired bad." Despite his best intentions, he can't concentrate and can't hold still. What's more, he can never resist an impulse: when his teacher assigns him to sharpening pencils to keep him from getting into mischief, he sharpens pencils, then chalk, then a Popsicle stick, and finally his own finger. He begins to settle down when his mother returns and gets him started on medication, but unfortunately, his morning pill wears off by noon every day. What makes this unusual is Gantos' sympathetic approach to all concerned. There are no bad guys among the adults, just well-meaning, occasionally exasperated grown-ups trying to help Joey get his behavior under control. Joey tells his own story, giving a vivid, keenly observed, detailed account of his actions and the reactions of others: "By lunchtime my meds had worn off again and I was spinning around in my chair like it was the Mad Hatter's Teacup ride at the church carnival." Gantos sometimes seems to be using Joey to inform readers, and occasionally makes Joey's comments seem too adult, but Joey is warm, lovable, and good-hearted, though maybe just a little too nice to be realistic. (He never even gets angry when he's deprived of the sugary treats he so craves.) Most teachers and students know at least one child with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and this book will surely help them become more understanding, even as they enjoy Gantos' fresh writing style and tart sense of humor. --Susan Dove Lempke, December 5, 1998, Booklist.

In My World:
This book would be good to address issues with lack of understand of others within the classroom environment. I would use this as a read aloud within the library and follow it up with discussions about the differences between people. I would address the issue of achieving goals when we aren’t certain that we can. This is definitely a book for upper elementary, middle or high school.