Maniac Magee

This article is about the book. For the film adaptation, see Maniac Magee (film).

Maniac Magee
1992 cover with Newbery seal
Author(s)	Jerry Spinelli
Cover artist	Alyssa Morris
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Young adult novel
Publisher	Little, Brown and Company
Publication date	1990
Media type	Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages	184 pp
ISBN	ISBN 0316807222
LC Classification	PZ7.S75663 Man 1990

Maniac Magee is a young adult fiction novel written by American author Jerry Spinelli and published in 1990. Exploring themes of racism and homelessness, it follows the story of an orphaned boy looking for a home in the fictional Pennsylvania town of Two Mills. He becomes a local legend for feats of athleticism and fearlessness, and his ignorance of sharp racial boundaries in the town. The book is popular in elementary school curricula, and has been used in scholarly studies on the relationship of children to racial identity and reading. A film adaptation of Maniac Magee was released in 2003.

Plot

Jeffrey Lionel Magee's parents were in a trolley when a drunk driver crashed and sunk the trolley into the Schuylkill River in Bridgeport, PA, orphaning him at age three. After living with his Aunt Dot and Uncle Dan in another town and enduring their mutual hatred and silence, he runs away during a school musical performance. One year (The Lost Year) and 200 miles later, Jeffrey finds himself across the river from Bridgeport in Two Mills, PA, where Hector Street sharply divides black East Enders from white West Enders.

He meets Amanda Beale, an East Ender who carries her library of random books in a suitcase, and he borrows a book before continuing his dash through town. Along the way, he intercepts a football pass made to local football star James "Hands" Down, infuriates gigantic little-leaguer John McNab by hitting home runs off his fastball, and saves an unlucky child from Finsterwald’s back yard. The Finsterwald house is a house dreaded by everyone and has a bad reputation. Because of these acts, he earned the nickname "Maniac" and started a local legend.

When bully East Ender "Mars Bar" Thompson corners Maniac and rips a page from Amanda's book, Maniac is rescued by Amanda herself, who takes him home to her chaotic but loving household. Maniac finds a temporary home there, helping Mr. and Mrs. Beale with the chores and pacifying their youngest children, Hester and Lester. Soon though, a few East End residents make it clear that they don't want him in the East End anymore by writing racist graffiti on the Beale's garage door. His final effort to gain acceptance is by untying the famous Cobble’s Knot (a huge, grimy ball of string with a year's supply of pizza waiting for its vanquisher.) After finishing the task he is praised by everyone as confetti is thrown into the air. Amanda Beale realizes, too late, that the confetti was made from the pages of her favorite book. Maniac runs away again so he won't hurt the Beales anymore. He takes shelter in the buffalo pen at the zoo and occasionally eats with the Pickwells—West Enders who provide spaghetti dinners for anyone who shows up at their dinner table.

At the zoo, Maniac meets Earl Grayson, a washed up minor-league baseball pitcher who turns out to be groundskeeper in the future , who hasn't ever learned to read, and who insists he has no stories. For a few months Jeffrey has a home again with Grayson, helping at work, celebrating holidays, and teaching Grayson to read. When Grayson dies in his sleep, Maniac wanders off aimlessly.

On the verge of frozen starvation he encounters Piper and Russell, child-ruffians who are running away to Mexico, and who turn out to be John McNab's brothers. Maniac leads them back home, bribing them with free pizza, and stays at their cockroach-infested, decrepit house. Here, Maniac finds the worst that the West End has to offer as he learns that the McNab's are making a bunker because they believe the East End is planning a rebellion. He endures the coarseness and squalor of the McNab home in hopes of keeping Piper and Russell in school and under control, but eventually gives up.

After beating Mars Bar in a foot race (running backward) and goading him into crashing a birthday party at the McNab's, Maniac is homeless again. He moves back into the buffalo pen, and runs for miles every morning before Two Mills wakes up. Before long, Mars Bar starts running with him as if by coincidence, and the two never say a word to each other. One day they come across a hysterical Piper McNab, who frantically leads them to Russell, stuck on the trolley trestle where Jeffrey's parents died. Maniac walks away silently, nearly unconscious and stunned by fear, while Mars Bar rescues Russell, becoming a hero in the child’s eyes. Maniac retreats to the buffalo pen, where Mars Bar leads Amanda Beale to persuade Maniac once and for all to come live with her family again.

Major characters

• Jeffrey Lionel "Maniac" Magee is the book’s protagonist and titular character. Jeffrey is orphaned and finds himself in Two Mills, where he becomes a local legend while trying to find a home. He has astonishing athletic abilities, runs everywhere he goes, can untie any knot, is allergic to pizza, and crosses the barrier between East End and West End as if blind to racial distinction.
• Amanda Beale is the first person Maniac meets in Two Mills. Amanda carries her library in a suitcase so her books aren't ruined by her younger siblings, Hester and Lester. She defends Maniac (whom she always calls Jeffrey) from Mars Bar the bully, and eventually provides him with a home. Due to the emphasis on race in this book, her name could be a reference to Amy Biehl, the 26-year-old girl murdered in 1993 as a result of being white in apartheid South Africa.
• Mars Bar Thompson the "baddest" kid in the East End and antagonist to Maniac. He resents Maniac's presence in the East End, which is exacerbated when Maniac beats him in a race. Mars Bar eventually rescues Russell McNab from the trolley truss, and offers Maniac a place to stay for a while.
• John McNab is infuriated when he can’t strike out Maniac with his fastball. After acting as a bully, he welcomes Maniac into his home when Maniac brings back John's younger brothers Piper and Russell after their attempt to run away to Mexico. He remains convinced that the black East Enders are planning a rebellion.
• Piper and Russell McNab are younger brothers of John McNab who play hookey, steal, and constantly try to run away from home. In their house, they use toy machine guns to shoot the "rebels" from the East End.
• Earl Grayson is the groundskeeper at the zoo and resident of the YMCA, though he was once a minor league baseball pitcher who struck out Willie Mays. He becomes friends with Maniac, who listens to his stories and teaches him to read.
• Mrs. Beale fried chiken

the kind and caring mother of Amanda, Hester, and Lester. She is very sweet and thoughtful to Maniac as well.

• Hester and Lester are the brother and sister of Amanda Beale and the son and daughter of Mrs. Beale. They are very hyper and will mess anything that they can get their hands on.

Themes

Jeffrey Lionel Magee struggles to find identity throughout the story, even as he grows into a legend as Maniac Magee. The standard identifiers of name, race and place of residence seem not to apply permanently to him.

Maniac insists to anyone who asks that his name is Jeffrey, since he was afraid of losing his name, and with it the only thing he had left from his mother and father. ^[1] Mrs. Beale assures him that "You'll be nothing but Jeffrey in here. But … out there, I don’t know.".^[1] The theme of names and nicknames is extended with Mars Bar, whose moniker stems from the candy bars he constantly eats, and whose fame has spread across both Ends of town.

Race and racism play a prominent role in the story, with Maniac drawn as a neutral observer with the inability to see "black" and "white." He observes to himself that East Enders are "...gingersnap and light fudge and dark fudge and acorn and butter rum and cinnamon and burnt orange. But never licorice, which, to him, was real black.",^[2] and that he himself has "...at least seven shades of color right on his own skin, not one of them being what he would call white (except for his eyeballs, which weren't any whiter than the eyeballs of the kids in the East End)".^[3] During a summer block party, an old East Ender complains to Maniac, "You got your own kind. It’s how you wanted it. Let’s keep it that way. NOW MOVE ON. Your kind’s waitin' up there [West End]!" ^[4]

Homes and homelessness are consistent themes in the novel. At Grayson's house, Maniac is comforted by having an address, and he later paints a "one oh one" (101) on the bandshell for the same purpose.^[5] Jeffrey even finds a home in the buffalo pen, where he shows affection to the buffalo calf and its mother, who show concern in return.

Two Mills and Norristown

The imaginary town of Two Mills is based on Jerry Spinelli’s childhood town of Norristown, PA.^[6] Spinelli has said that material from the story was inspired by his childhood experiences there,^[7] and a number of geographical correspondences confirm this. Norristown, like Two Mills, is across the Schuylkill River from Bridgeport, and neighboring towns include Conshohocken, Jeffersonville and Worcester, all of which are mentioned in the novel.^[8] In fact, Conshohocken has a Hector street, which historically served as a boundary between African American and White residents.^{[citation needed]} The Elmwood Park Zoo is in Norristown, and Valley Forge, where Maniac wanders,^[8] is nearby as well.

Reception

Critical reviews

Maniac Magee was well-received upon publication, variously lauded in reviews as "always affecting," ^[9] having "broad appeal," and being full of "pathos and compassion." ^[10] Booklist reviewer Deborah Abbot says, "...this unusual novel magically weaves timely issues of homelessness, racial prejudice, and illiteracy into a complicated story rich in characters and details...an energetic piece of writing that bursts with creativity, enthusiasm, and hope." ^[11]

Reviewers noted that the theme of racism was uncommon for "middle readers".^[12] Criticism concentrated on Spinelli's choice of framing the novel as a legend, which Shoemaker calls a "cop-out," ^[10] which frees him from having to make it real or possible. It has also been called "long-winded," and seeming like a "chalkboard lesson." ^[9]

Awards and honors

• 1990: Boston Globe/Horn Book Award ^[13]

• 1991: Carolyn Field Award,^[14] Newbery Medal (American Library Association) ^[15]

• 1992: Charlotte Award,^[16] Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award,^[17] Flicker Tale Award,^[18] Indian Paintbrush Book Award,^[19] Rhode Island Children's Book Award ^[20]

• 1993: Buckeye Children's Book Award,^[21] Land of Enchantment Award,^[22] Mark Twain Award,^[23] Massachusetts Children's Book Award,^[24] Nevada Young Readers' Award,^[25] Pacific Northwest Library Association Young Reader's Choice Award,^[26] Rebecca Caudill Young Reader's Book Award,^[27] West Virginia Children's Book Award,^[24] William Allen White Award^[28]

Use in education and research

Maniac Magee is popular in elementary school curricula. Many study units and teaching guides are available,^[29] including a study guide by the author.^[30] The novel has been used as a tool in scholarly work on childhood education and development. Fondrie cites it as an example in a discussion of how to bring up and discuss issues of race and class among young students.^[31] McGinley and Kamberlis use it in a study of how children use reading and writing as “vehicles for personal, social, and political exploration.” ^[32] Along the same lines, Lehr and Thompson examine classroom discussions as a reflection of the teacher’s role as cultural mediator and the response of children to moral dilemmas,^[33] and Enciso studies expressions of social identity in the responses of children to Maniac Magee.^[34]

In a less pedagogical vein, Roberts uses the character of Amanda Beale as an archetypical "female rescuer" in a study of Newbery books,^[35] and Sullivan suggests the book as being useful in discussions of reading attitudes and difficulties.^[36]

Adaptations

Maniac Magee was adapted as an audiobook by Listening Library in 2005 (ISBN 0307243188) ^[37] and as a TV movie in 2003,^[38] which was nominated for the Humanitas prize in the children’s live action category.^[39]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Spinelli, Jerry (1990). Maniac Magee. p. 53. ISBN 1559993871. 
2. ^ Spinelli, Jerry (1990). Maniac Magee. p. 51. ISBN 1559993871. 
3. ^ Spinelli, Jerry (1990). Maniac Magee. p. 58. ISBN 1559993871. 
4. ^ Spinelli, Jerry (1990). Maniac Magee. p. 61. ISBN 1559993871. 
5. ^ Spinelli, Jerry (1990). Maniac Magee. p. 109. ISBN 1559993871. 
6. ^ Long Bostrom, Kathleen (June, 2003). Winning Authors: Profiles of the Newbery Medalists. Libraries Unlimited. pp. 247–251. ISBN 1563088770. 
7. ^ Spinelli, Jerry (2001). Literature Circle Guides: Maniac Magee (Grades 4-8). p. 9. ISBN 0439163625. 
8. ^ ^{a b} Spinelli, Jerry (1990). Maniac Magee. p. 122. ISBN 1559993871. 
9. ^ ^{a b} Kirkus. May 1, 1990. 
10. ^ ^{a b} Shoemaker, Joel (June 1, 1990). School Library Journal. 
11. ^ Abbot, Deborah (April 21, 1991). "Review of Maniac Magee". Booklist: p. 33. 
12. ^ Publishers’ Weekly. May 11, 1990. 
13. ^ "Boston Globe - Horn Book Award, past winners". http://www.hbook.com/bghb/past/past.asp. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
14. ^ "Carolyn Field Award, past winners". http://www.carnegielibrary.org/kids/books/showbooklist.cfm?list=fieldaward. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
15. ^ "Newbery Medal, past winners". http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/newberyhonors/newberymedal.cfm#90s. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
16. ^ "Charlotte Award, past winners" (PDF). http://www.nysreading.org/Awards/charlotte/1990to2008%20History%20of%20NYSRA%20Charlotte%20Winners.pdf. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
17. ^ "Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award, past winners". http://www.dcfaward.org/lists/pastwinners.htm. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
18. ^ "NDCBA, past winners". http://www.ndla.info/Flickertale/ftwinn.htm. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
19. ^ "Indian Paintbrush Award, past nominees and winners" (PDF). http://ccpls.org/bookawards/IPbibauthors.pdf. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
20. ^ "Rhode Island Children’s Book Award, past winners". http://www.ri.net/RIEMA/pastwinners.html. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
21. ^ "Buckeye Children's book award/winners". http://www.bcbookaward.info/winners_past3.htm. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
22. ^ "Land of Enchantment book award past winners". http://www.loebookaward.com/past.html. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
23. ^ "Mark Twain Award, past winners". http://www.maslonline.org/awards/books/MarkTwain/PrevWin.php. Retrieved 18 August 2009. ^{[dead link]}
24. ^ ^{a b} "JRank Biographies: Jerry Spinelli/Sidelights". http://biography.jrank.org/pages/1470/Spinelli-Jerry-1941-Sidelights.html. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
25. ^ "Nevada Young Readers award: Past winners". http://www.nevadalibraries.org/Divisions/NYRA/past_winners.html. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
26. ^ "PNLA children's choice past winners". http://www.pnla.org/yrca/pastwinners.htm. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
27. ^ "Rebecca Caudill Young Reader’s Book Award, past winners/winners". http://www.rebeccacaudill.org/winners/index.htm. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
28. ^ "William Allen White Award: Past winners". http://waw.emporia.edu/winners/pastwinners.htm#1990. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
29. ^ "amazon.com, search results for "Maniac Magee guide"". http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=maniac+magee+guide&x=0&y=0. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
30. ^ Spinelli, Jerry (2001). Literature Circle Guides: Maniac Magee (Grades 4-8). ISBN 0439163625. 
31. ^ Fondrie, Suzanne (2001). "Gentle doses of racism: Whiteness and children’s literature". Journal of Children's Literature (fall): pp. 9–13. 
32. ^ McGinley, William; Kamberlis, George (December 1993). "Maniac Magee and Ragtime Tumpie: Children negotiating self and world through reading and writing". 43rd Annual meeting of the national reading conference. Charlston, SC. 
33. ^ Lehr, Susan; Thompson, Deborah (2000). "The Dynamic Nature of Response: Children Reading and Responding to Maniac Magee and The Friendship". Reading Teacher 53 (March): pp. 480–493. 
34. ^ Enisco, Patricia (1994). "Cultural Identity and Response to Literature: Running Lessons from Maniac Magee". Language Arts 71 (November): pp. 524–533. 
35. ^ Roberts, Sherron (April 1998). "The female rescuer in Newbery books: Who is she?". Annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association. San Diego, CA. 
36. ^ Sullivan, Emilie (September 1994). "Three Good Juvenile Books with Literacy Models". Journal of Reading: p. 55. 
37. ^ "Random House". http://www.randomhouse.com. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
38. ^ "IMDb: Maniac Magee". http://www.imdb.com. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
39. ^ "IMDb: Humanitas Prize 2003". http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0246063/. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 

External links

• Author Jerry Spinelli's homepage

Awards
Preceded by Number the Stars	Newbery Medal recipient 1991	Succeeded by Shiloh
Preceded by The Doll in the Garden: A Ghost Story	Winner of the William Allen White Children's Book Award 1993	Succeeded by Shiloh