Maniac Magee | Jerry Spinelli | *Teacher Review of Maniac Magee*

Maniac Magee | Jerry Spinelli | This book is the greatest!!

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Maniac Magee

	Maniac Magee Jerry Spinelli Little, Brown Young Readers, 1999 - 180 pages average customer review:based on 712 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

*Teacher Review of Maniac Magee*

Title: Maniac Magee
Author: Maniac Magee
Publisher: Little, Brown & Co. Young Readers
Publication Date: 9/1/199
Reading Level: Accelerated Reader Level: 4.9 Appropriate for children ages 9-13.
Number of pages: 184
Genre: Fiction (Young Adult)
Jerry Spinelli's classic book Maniac Magee is still read and enjoyed by thousands of young adults every year. A Newberry Award winner, Spinelli's story of a young orphan named Jeffrey "Maniac" Magee provides its readers with both an exciting and moving plot. Maniac becomes a legend in the town of Two Mills for numerous feats, among them running along train rails, untying an enormous knot and beating the fastest kid in town running backwards. At the same time, the book addresses the important issues of racism, segregation and ignorance. This review will provide potential readers with a brief synopsis of the plot, some negative aspects of the book and the reviewer's opinion of the book as an elementary school teacher.
The plot of Maniac Magee revolves around the story's main character, Jeffrey Lionel Magee. Known simply as "Maniac," Magee appears suddenly in Two Mills, a segregated town divided racially into East and West Ends. Maniac's parents were killed in a trolley accident, and he arrives in Two Mills after running away from his aunt and uncle. Magee first meets Amanda Beale, a young black girl who loves her books so much that she carries them around in a suitcase at all times. Well-developed characters like Amanda are found throughout Spinelli's story, providing readers with a variety of personalities to interact with Maniac. The more time Maniac spends in Two Mills, the more his legend grows. He takes on John McNabb, the town bully, in a baseball game and hits home-run after home-run off of him. He races Mars Bar Thompson, the self-anointed fastest kid in Two Mills, and backpedals the last part of their race to victory. He unties Cobble's Knot, a prolific knot outside of a pizza parlor, earning himself free pizza for a year. As the story progresses, Maniac lives in a variety of locations: first with the African-American Beale family, for a time with racist and white McNabb family and even in the Two Mills Zoo in the buffalo enclosure. Throughout the story the reader is introduced to real-world issue of segregation between the town's East and West Ends. Maniac experiences the ignorance and racism that exist between the town's African-American and white communities that have simmered below the surface for years. Maniac is thrust into the middle of this issue because of his comfort with both groups of people, and the author Spinelli does an excellent job of illustrating to his young audience the danger and outright silliness of such close-minded ideas.
If there is a negative aspect to Spinelli's story, it might be the book's ending. As a caution to potential readers, after following such an engaging plot the book's conclusion is a bit of a letdown. As to avoid being a spoiler, this review will not detail the ending, but will ensure potential readers that the conclusion is short and the book remains thrilling up to this point.
As a fourth grade teacher, I have read this book aloud to my class and they would beg me to continue every time we had to stop. My students and I thoroughly enjoy the great characters and the thrilling adventures that Maniac has throughout the story. Not only is Maniac Magee incredibly fun to read, it also provides its readers with important real-world issues such as racism and close-mindedness. I would highly recommend this book to any student in fourth through eighth grade, but even as an adult I enjoy reading Maniac Magee every time!

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This book is the greatest!!

Jeffrey Lionel "Maniac" Magee was a white kid who had lost a lot. His parents were killed when he was three. Then he went to live with his aunt and uncle. His aunt and uncle didn't like each other and didn't share anything. They had two of everything, and they didn't talk to each other. They tried to split him right down the middle, too. He finally couldn't take it any more and he ran away.

He got his nickname because he became a legend. When I said he ran away, I meant it. He ran 200 miles to Two Mills, PA. This is when the story really gets interesting.

Two Mills had two parts. There was East Mill, where all of the black people lived, and West Mill, where all the white people lived. It was divided by one street right down the middle. Manic didn't know that and when he ran into town, he ran into East Mill. To him, people were just people and the color of their skin didn't matter.

Most of us worry about fitting in with other people. Manic didn't worry about that. He just tried to do what he thought was right and to help other people. He had one very special talent that made all of the little kids love him and he helped them all. His talent was part of what made him a legend and he even did something that nobody else had ever been able to do and won a big prize. He couldn't even use the prize for himself, but he used it to do good anyway.

The main things that Manic didn't have and wanted were a home and a family. He had a lot of different places that he stayed, but this book helped me to understand more about the difference between just a place to stay and a home. You'll see how he got what he wanted, then gave it up because he thought he was hurting the people he loved.

This book has a lot of lessons. It made me see how we can be better people and why people are not all the same. And, it made me see that people aren't always what we think they are. But, even when the book is really giving us a lesson, it is funny. I think the main reason I paid attention to what the book was saying was because it put things in ways I could understand and relate to. The ending is great. It may be a kid's book, but I think everybody should read it.

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Excellent read

I read this book in an accelerated elementary class and simply fell in love. It has wonderful, somewhat fantastical story development and an absolutely wonderful progression.

The shipping service was as well superb and my childhood memory arrived with little more than a coat of shelf dust. It is a shame that a wonderful book like this was ever out of someone's hands. Books like these are what inspire us to continue dreaming and reaching for the stars. That or twisted ankles on railroad tracks. Take your pick.

Finding a place in the world

Maniac Magee is a young boy who lost his parents and was forced to move in with his aunt and uncle. Not liking them he one day decide to run away. Now on his own Magee was trying to find a place to stay. Later on he meets a girl who lives on the black east side and befriends her because they share the same interest in books. She later invites him home and he stays with her for a while. But since he was white, people had started to have issues with him so he decided to leave. Then after being on his own again he met a man by the name of Greyson, and he stayed with Greyson for a while at a gym in a janitor's closet. One day Greyson passed away, and not knowing where to go or whether to stay Magee left and went out for his daily run. He decided to go on the east side again and he once again ran into his old friend. They talked and he decided he was going to go back to where he used to stay. Finally Mars who was a bully towards Magee ran into him one day and made fun of him and somehow they talked for a while and began to not hate each other. He also become friends with some of the other people in town and decided that that was his place and he finally had a place where he belonged.

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Maniac Magee

I liked Maniac Magee because he had different families. He ran away from his aunt and uncle's house. Maniac was white and he went to live with Amanda's family. They were black. He helped people because he got black people and white people together. The book had a slow beginning, and the middle was boring. I liked the part where Amanda is yelling at Maniac. When Maniac lost his parents he met Amanda and they become friends. I think this book should be on every kid's reading list because they can learn how to get along with other people.

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