Joey Pigza Loses Control (Joey Pigza Books) [Unabridged] [Audio Cassette]

Jack Gantos (Author, Reader)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Series: Joey Pigza Books

Read by the author
approx. 3 hours, 2 cassettes

Sequel to Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key, National Book Award finalist

When Joey Pigza meets his dad for the first time in years, he meets a grown-up version of his old out-of-control self. Carter Pigza is as wired as Joey used to be—before his stint in special ed, and before he got his new meds.

Joey's mom reluctantly agrees that he can stay with his dad for a summer visit, which sends Joey racing with sky-high hpes that he and Carter can finally get to know each other. But as the weeks whirl by, Carter has bigger plans in mind: He decides that just as he has pulled himself up by his own bootstraps, Joey can do the same and become as normal as any kid, without the help of a doctor's prescription. Carter believes Joey can do it, and Joey wants to believe him more than anything in the world.

Here is the continuation of the acclaimed Joey Pigza story, affirming not only that Joey Pigza is a true original but that it runs in the family.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The loveable, disaster-prone hero of Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key is back, this time in charge of his attention deficit disorder and ready to greet the world as a normal kid--with the help of his new and improved meds, of course. Now that Joey has a handle on his actions, he feels prepared to face the most mysterious member of his family--his estranged father, Carter Pigza. He convinces his skeptical mom to let him spend part of his summer vacation getting to know his dad again. The only problem is that Joey's dad is just as wired as Joey used to be: "I looked over at his mouth, which never seemed to close--not even the lips touched together--and it made me dizzy to listen to him." Carter believes that Joey can kick his ADD the way he himself kicked alcoholism--cold turkey. But when Carter flushes his meds, Joey has to decide if being friends with his dad is worth losing his hard-won self-control. "That old Joey was coming to get me and I couldn't do anything about it... I closed my eyes and told myself to sleep while I could."

Jack Gantos's second book about Joey Pigza is just as delightful and soulful as his first. Joey's attempts to keep the fragile peace in his life intact are touching, and his intense longing to just be normal will mirror the feelings of most preteens, whether they have ADD or not. Joey Pigza may sometimes lose control, but he never loses his heart. This is an exceptional sequel. (Ages 10 and older) --Jennifer Hubert --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly

First introduced in Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key, Gantos's hyperactive hero Joey Pigza has not lost any of his liveliness, but after undergoing therapy and a stint in special ed., he now can exercise a reasonable amount of self-controlDprovided he takes his meds. His mother has reluctantly agreed to let him spend the summer three hours from home with his father, an alcoholic who, so he claims, has taken steps to turn his life around. Readers will sight trouble ahead long before Joey's optimistic perception of his father grows blurry. Mr. Pigza is at least as "wired" as the old Joey, and when he resorts to his drinking habits and becomes belligerent, Joey (who still wants to win his father's favor) feels scared. Then Mr. Pigza, telling Joey his medicine patches are a "crutch" that Joey doesn't need, summarily flushes them down the toilet: "You are liberated... You are your own man, in control of your own life," he announces. Joey is torn between wanting to call his mom immediately and sticking with his father. "Even though I knew he was wrong," Joey says, "he was my dad, and I wanted him to be right." Like its predecessor, this high-voltage, honest novel mixes humor, pain, fear and courage with deceptive ease. Struggling to please everyone even as he sees himself hurtling toward disaster, Joey emerges as a sympathetic hero, and his heart of gold never loses its shine. Ages 10-up. (Sept.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Listening Library; Unabridged edition (September 12, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0807261610
• ISBN-13: 978-0807261613
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 4.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (134 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,079,293 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jack Gantos has written novels for adults, young adults, and middle grade readers, as well as over twenty books for primary readers, including twelve titles chronicling the misadventures of Rotten Ralph. He lives in Santa Fe, NM.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Deals well with the intergenerational issues of AD/HD, January 2, 2001

By 

Carol Watkins "Psychiatrist" (Parkton, Maryland, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Joey Pigza Loses Control (Joey Pigza Books) (Hardcover)

Joey Pigza Swallowed a Key, and Joey Pigza Loses Control by Jack Gantos  Joey Pigza is a kind but impulsive, inattentive boy, living with his divorced mother. In the first book, Joey is diagnosed with AD/HD. The author deals humorously and sympathetically with Joey's impulsivity and how it gets him in trouble in school and at home. Eventually Joey and his mother learn how to compensate through humor, educational strategies and medication.  The second book still retains some of the humor of the first, but deals with more serious issues. Joey's estranged father arranges to have Joey stay with him for the summer. The father clearly has ADHD symptoms similar to those of his son. Further, the father struggles with alcoholism and legal problems. During the summer, he makes Joey stop he medication. In his father Joey sees what he might have become. This second story deals with the very serious issues of custody disputes, parental disagreement about medication, alcoholism and its effect on a child with AD/HD. Some parents might want to read this book with their older elementary school and middle school children to explain some of these complex issues.  Carol E, Watkins, M.D. Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mustread for this age group, September 24, 2000

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Joey Pigza Loses Control (Joey Pigza Books) (Hardcover)

The "good meds" that Joey Pigza takes has calmed down the youngster considerably, but he worries when his mom drives to meet his dad for the first time in several years. His mom is even more nervous because she knows that her son's dad Carter is a bigger version of Joey without the medicine. Joey also is worried because he wants his dad to like him so they can be more like a real father and son.

Over the next six weeks, Carter proves to be much more complex than Joey's wife described or the way the lad dreamed his dad would act. Carter's lessons in life reinforce his behavior leading to the tossing of Joey's medicine down the toilet while insisting real men tough out their problems without external aids. Although Joey knows what happens without the "good meds", he decides to "tough" it out even as his own behavior begins to spin out of control.

JOEY PIGZA LOSES CONTROL, the sequel to the great JOEY PIGZA SWALLOWS HIS KEY, is a tremendous dark tale aimed at middle schoolers, but should be prime reading for grown-ups. The story line cleverly plays at two levels. The interesting plot engages young readers as they cheer for Joey to survive to balance his out of control universe. The tale also targets adults to understand that we serve as role models that our children will one day emulate. Readers of all ages who wire into Jack Gantos will know they have read some of the most poignant drama available.

Harriet KlaUSNER

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I Love Joey Pigza!, August 19, 2002

By 

Tammy (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Joey Pigza Loses Control (Joey Pigza Books) (Paperback)

I love Joey Pigza! Joey is such an erratic, yet heartwarming, character that really has you on his side for the entire book. As Joey says himself, he's always had a certain way about him that gets people on his side. As a teacher of both general education and special education students, I have at least one student with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, just like Joey, every year. Never before have I felt so in touch with those students or empathize with their symptoms than I did while reading about Joey. Joey states plainly that he doesn't have many friends because most of the kids tease him. Joey also talks about his experiences in school and how about half the class wants him to get better and behave, and the other half eggs him on, so that he'll stop the teacher's lesson. This was a revelation for me. I had never made the connection that other students would encourage disruptive behaviors in class for less than pure motives and then turn around and ridicule these behaviors outside of school for being "weird". But it certainly fits the characteristics of the typical social interactions with such students. Joey's mom is such a patient and loving mother who just can't take Joey's antics and trouble that he gets into. Being a single mom, doesn't make matters better and when Joey is going to spend the summer with his loony dad and grandmother, things just get worse. Joey's dad is a HUGE disappointment throughout the book as he is given this momentous "second chance" with the son he left behind to begin a new life. He yells at Joey while he's playing baseball, he drinks in excess, and is very irresponsible with the role of parenting Joey. He cared more about Joey brushing his teeth than other essential needs for his son. Joey wants so desperately to have a father and son relationship with his dad or even just to hold a "back and forth" conversation. His dad fails him in so many ways you want to reach through the pages and shake the grown man silly. Other people in the book accept Joey for who he is, such as his grandmother, even though she has always had a problem with his hyperness. Leezy, his dad's girlfriend also takes a liking to Joey right off the bat. Joey's dog, Pablo, takes some abuse when Joey gets a little too excited or forgetful, but his love for Joey is apparent. In the end, Joey's mom comes to his rescue and Joey is whisked away from his dad. I was regretful that Joey couldn't make a dad want to change his ways and that Joey had to leave with many more failures. I look forward to reading more about Joey and hopefully good things start to happen to a well deserved boy.