Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key
Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key, written by Jack Gantos, is the first in a series of books featuring Joey Pigza. The book was a National Book Award finalist.[1]
Plot summary
The story, told from Joey's perspective, deals with his inability to control his impulses, due to Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). These impulses lead Joey to do numerous things, both at home and at school, which get him in trouble.
Joey has been thinking about changing the worlds moves after sneaking into an assembly. When his teacher comes back, at recess, he decides to make 1,000,000 bumper stickers. The scissors he uses are too small, and it hurts his hand, so he sneaks into his teacher's desk and takes the sharper, bigger scissors. He trips over his bunny slippers and cuts the tip off a girl's (Maria Dombrowski)nose. Blood drips everywhere and she is put in an ambulance and rushed to the hospital.. He gets put into the Special Ed Center downtown where he gets a trans-dermal patch and his behavior improves. He gets a dog later in the story who is just as hyper as he is, and is what he calls a "Joey Pigza dog", or a Chihuahua.
References
- ↑ "National Book Award Winners and Finalists since 1950" (PDF). Retrieved 3 February 2010.