JOEY PIGZA SWALLOWED THE KEY

Jack Gantos’s brilliant middle-grade novel about one child’s attention deficit affliction is read by the author with perfect emotional pitch. Joey Pigza is wise beyond his years, completely aware of his disability and its ill effects on others. The frantic pace of his breathless narration is juxtaposed with the controlled voices of the generally kind and long-suffering teachers, nurse, and principal who’ve been trying to manage his behavior for years, one hour at a time. The listener’s sympathies are heightened by the heart-wrenching family stories Joey relates of his emotionally abusive grandmother, his absentee father, and his neglectful mother, who tries to make good--and does--in the end. Be prepared! There’s no escaping this audio without a belly laugh or a tear. T.B. Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award. © AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine [Published: APR/MAY 00]