Joey Pigza can't sit still. He can't pay attention, he can't follow the rules, and he can't help it—especially when his medications aren't working. Joey has had problems ever since he was born, problems just like his dad and grandma have. And whether he's wreaking havoc on a class trip or swallowing his house key, Joey's problems are getting worse. In fact, his behavior is so off the wall that his teachers are threatening to send him to the special-ed center downtown.
Joey knows he's really a good kid, but no matter how hard he tries to do the right thing, something always seems to go wrong. Will he ever get anything right?
Notable Children’s Recording (American Library Association)
Winner of an AudioFile Earphones Award
Editor’s Choice in Audiobooks (Booklist)
National Book Award Finalist
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. (c) AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine
