Synopses & Reviews
From the Newbery Medal-winning author of Dead End in Norvelt, life for Jack Henry in a brand-new place is filled with the same old craziness
Jack Henry has moved to the island of Barbados with his offbeat family and his secret diary. But still he cant escape his penchant for wacky misadventure. Because of a headless chicken, he gets a violent case of blood poisoning. In a pepper-eating contest with his father, he discovers the perils of male bonding. And then he has his heartstrings twanged by an older woman who just happens to be his sisters best friend.
These are just a few of his trials and tribulations in these eight fierce and funny stories, based on the authors own childhood diaries.
Review
"Extravagantly imaginative...Combines side-splitting comedy with sweetly melancholic undertones." --
Publishers Weekly
Review
“Extravagantly imaginative adventures . . . Combines side-splitting comedy with sweetly melancholic undertones.” —Publishers Weekly
“Sharp humor.” —Booklist
“Jacks voice is completely original.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Jack Gantos has a way with boys, or a good memory for being one.” —The New York Times Book Review
Synopsis
Jack Henry, the hero of Heads or Tails: Stories from Sixth Grade, is back. It is the summer after sixth grade and Jack and his offbeat family have relocated to Barbados. But even in a tropical paradise, Jack is plagued by misadventure. He gets a violent case of blood poisoning (after chasing a headless chicken), discovers the perils of male bonding (in a pepper-eating contest with his father), and has his heartstrings twanged by an older woman (his sister's best friend)--to name just a few of his trials and tribulations in these eight fierce and funny stories.
Synopsis
From the Newbery Medal-winning author of Dead End in Norvelt, life for Jack Henry in a brand-new place is filled with the same old craziness
About the Author
Jack Gantos has written books for people of all ages, from picture books and middle-grade fiction to novels for young adults and adults. His works include Hole in My Life, a memoir that won the Michael L. Printz and Robert F. Sibert Honors, Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key, a National Book Award Finalist, Joey Pigza Loses Control, a Newbery Honor book, and Dead End in Norvelt, winner of the Newbery Medal and the Scott ODell Award for Historical Fiction.
Jack was born in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania, and when he was seven, his family moved to Barbados. He attended British schools, where there was much emphasis on reading and writing, and teachers made learning a lot of fun. When the family moved to south Florida, he found his new classmates uninterested in their studies, and his teachers spent most of their time disciplining students. Jack retreated to an abandoned bookmobile (three flat tires and empty of books) parked out behind the sandy ball field, and read for most of the day. The seeds for Jacks writing career were planted in sixth grade, when he read his sisters diary and decided he could write better than she could. He begged his mother for a diary and began to collect anecdotes he overheard at school, mostly from standing outside the teachers lounge and listening to their lunchtime conversations. Later, he incorporated many of these anecdotes into stories.
While in college, he and an illustrator friend, Nicole Rubel, began working on picture books. After a series of well-deserved rejections, they published their first book, Rotten Ralph, in 1976. It was a success and the beginning of Jacks career as a professional writer. Jack continued to write childrens books and began to teach courses in childrens book writing and childrens literature. He developed the masters degree program in childrens book writing at Emerson College and the Vermont College M.F.A. program for childrens book writers. He now devotes his time to writing books and educational speaking. He lives with his family in Boston, Massachusetts.