Loser (Library Binding)

by Jerry Spinelli (Author) "You grow up with a kid but you never really notice him..." (more)
Key Phrases: giraffe hat, lucky stone, waiting man, Field Day, Miss Meeks, Hector Binns (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Donald Zinkoff is one of the greatest kids you could ever hope to meet. He laughs easily, he likes people, he loves school, he tries to rescue lost girls in blizzards, he talks to old ladies. The only problem is, he's a loser. Until fourth grade, Zinkoff's uncontrollable giggling in class, sloppy handwriting, horrible flute playing, bad grades, clumsiness, and ineptitude at sports go largely unnoticed. When he blows a race for his team, however, his transition to loserdom is complete: "[Loser] is the word. It is Zinkoff's new name. It is not in the roll book." Fortunately, he doesn't really notice. As he did in Stargirl, Newbery Medal-winning author Jerry Spinelli again explores the cruelty of a student body and how it does and doesn't affect one student, pure of spirit. Presumably if Loser makes one child view a "different kid" as a three-dimensional character, Spinelli will consider his book successful.

The author recounts Zinkoff's story--a case study of sorts--in short sentences from a deliberately reportorial point of view, documenting the first years of the boy's life and his evolution into a loser. What makes the book charming and buoyant is that the reader, like Zinkoff's parents and his favorite teacher, appreciates the boy's oblivious joie de vivre and his divine quirks. What is less compelling about the novel is the "let this be a lesson to us" heavy-handedness that accompanies the reportorial approach. Still, Spinelli comes through again with a lively, often moving story with humor and heart to spare. (Ages 8 to 12) --Karin Snelson --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly
Spinelli (Maniac Magee; Stargirl) here enters the consciousness of the social pariah. Beginning with Donald Zinkoff's early days of invisibility and ignorant bliss ("Maybe it annoys you that he seems to be having even more fun than you, but it's a one-second thought and it's over," says the omniscient narrator in the opening chapter), the narrative follows the boy through his instant love for Satterfield Elementary School, then zeroes in on the turning point: "In fourth grade Zinkoff is discovered.... Big-kid eyes are picky. They notice things that the little-kid eyes never bothered with.... Twenty-seven classmates now turn their new big-kid eyes to Zinkoff." On field day in June, the fourth graders call him as they see him: "Each pronounces it perfectly. `Loser.' " Through the use of the omniscient narrator, Spinelli builds up to the boy's "unveiling" with examples of Zinkoff's uncontrollable giggling in first grade, his one-sided friendship with his next-door neighbor, and his forced poor-sport behavior on the soccer field when the hero's team does not win. Spinelli balances Zinkoff's mistreatment by his peers with abundant love from his family and the friendship of the quirky neighbors to whom his postman father delivers mail especially the Waiting Man who patiently anticipates his brother's return from Vietnam, and a toddler attached to a clothesline with a leash. Spinelli creates no idealistic ending here; instead, with a near tragedy, the author demonstrates the differences between those who can continue to see with the more compassionate "little-kid eyes" and those who lose sight of what is truly important. Ages 8-12.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Library Binding: 224 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins (May 7, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060004835
• ISBN-13: 978-0060004835
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (198 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,037,731 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another winner...not loser, June 22, 2002

By	Karen Kirsch "blazerlib" (Novi, MI United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

During the last 5 years of a 29 year career as a classroom
teacher I began reading aloud to my middle school students.
Shame on me! I should have begun on day one. Not only did my
students love it (Southwest Detroit), but I learned that young
adult fiction can be as exciting and heartwarming as anything
written for an adult. My students loved Maniac Magee, Crash, and The Library Card by Spinelli. They begged me to read just one more chapter each day. Of course, they also loved when Ms. Kirsch got too teary-eyed and had to call on a student to read.
I have been the librarian in our school for the past 3 years
and always have a young adult novel alongside my other reads.
Jerry Spinelli is my favorite. Wringer, Stargirl, and now Loser
are among my all-time most special books. I forget the storylines
of many other books I have read, but never Jerry Spinelli's. I
am able to recount each character and the circumstances that
were important in their lives.
Loser is a very special book. Donald Zinkoff is an extra-
ordinary character. His giraffe hat, his love for school, his
uncontrollable giggles, his belief that he runs so fast. He
wants to sit in that first seat in class, and yet his last name
dooms him to the last seat in the last row. Until the 4th grade
when his teacher seats him in the first row. Oh, how he loves
that teacher. Yahoo!
Zinkoff reminds me of no other student I have ever encountered. Maybe by the time they get to sixth grade, they
have had that exhuberance knocked out of them. Maybe that is
why I cried so hard while reading this book.
While Donald becomes a hero in our mind while searching for
the girl on a leash in a snowstorm, Spinelli doesn't rally the
classmates in a stunning salute. He eases us out, and I guess
we know that things are going to be all right for Zinkoff.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One teacher's review of Loser, January 1, 2003

By	Mr. C (New York City, NY, USA) - See all my reviews

As a fifth grade teacher, I picked up Jerry Spinelli's Loser to preview whether it would make an appropriate read aloud selection for my students. Loser tells the story of Donald Zinkoff's childhood. At first, Donald appears to be an average elementary school kid, but as he grows older, his classmates begin to view him differently. Before, Donald was silly and clumsy, but in fourth grade, suddenly he is seen as weird and strange. An important turning point in the story happens when Zinkoff's poor coordination causes his fourth grade classmates to lose an athletic contest. By the end of the day, Donald has a new name-"Loser." Spinelli spends the rest of the book discussing Zinkoff's move to middle school and hinting that somehow, Zinkoff will change from "zero" to "hero." When a neighborhood girl is missing, Zinkoff sees his chance to become popular. When she is finally found, will Donald Zinkoff still be a "Loser?"

I enjoyed reading Loser for a number of reasons. First, the plot of Loser is a simple one that I think every human-young and old-can relate to. Everyone's been teased one time or another. I think it would be an interesting experience for all readers to see how one character deals with being teased. Zinkoff is such a complicated character because he doesn't even realize that others see him as a loser. Most people would feel hurt and embarrassed (maybe even angry) if they were in Donald's shoes, but not Zinkoff.

Because he is so oblivious to his classmate's taunts, I started to believe that there was more to Zinkoff than Jerry Spinelli was saying. Is Zinkoff just clumsy and weird or does he suffer from real learning and behavioral disabilities? I kept hoping Spinelli would explain more about Donald and his condition. My class and I just finished Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key by Jack Gantos, which is about the life of a young boy with ADHD. I think that book was better for younger readers because it explained WHY some kids behave as they do. In Loser, we never actually learn why Zinkoff acts like such a "loser."

My favorite part of the book happens late in the story when Zinkoff tries to rescue a missing girl. I predicted that he would find her, return her to her thankful family, and become the most popular boy in middle school. I was excited to see that Loser doesn't have a happily-ever-after ending. If you are a fan of realistic fiction books for children, Loser would be a great choice.

Still, I have mixed feelings whether I would share this book with my class. The writing is mostly simple sentences, but there is more complicated language that I think they would appreciate better when they are a few years older. I would recommend this book for middle school students through adults because they can all relate to the story and they'd be able to answer many of the questions that come up in Loser. Whether or not I decide to use Loser, I still think all elementary school students should be exposed to Jerry Spinelli (Maniac Magee, Wringer, Fourth Grade Rats, The Library Card) because he writes about real childhood situations and problems. Most children's books do not do this, but Loser does. Jerry Spinelli's Loser is definitely not a "loser." Check it out!

15 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Sophisticated Story, June 17, 2003

By	Timothy Haugh (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

As a Newbery Award-winning author, Spinelli can expect readers to have high expectations. Especially when he produces a novel in the "young adult" genre. Fortunately, Spinelli rarely disappoints and he doesn't disappoint here.

Loser is the story Donald Zinkoff as he moves from the first through the sixth grades. In essence, it is the story of how "winners" and "losers" are created. In the early grades, Zinkoff may be a little odd but his peers have not yet learned how and why to exclude certain children. As time goes on, however, Zinkoff's love of school (despite his rather limited abilities) and, in particular, poor performance at sports makes him an outcast.

It should be understood that this novel is basically an interesting character study of a single character--Zinkoff. Despite the rather dramatic wandering in the snowstorm near the end of the book, there is not a lot of action beyond the ordinary day-to-day events in the life of a young man. But this is one of the things that gives this book its charm. That, and Zinkoff's own obliviousness to his social status. It is nice to see a character who basically likes himself.

On the other hand, this is a clue to the novel's weakness. This is basically a very sophisticated story about a boy who has social problems as well as real problems that are only hinted at. As an adult, I found it very true and interesting but it works on a level higher than a lot of younger readers might be capable of reaching. Teenage readers might get a lot from this novel but will they read a story about a grade-schooler? I am afraid this novel will have a tough time finding an audience which is too bad because it is well worth reading.