Joey Pigza Loses Control (2000)

great book for kids to understand about learning disabilities

This 2001 Newbery Honor book is well deserving of the award. It is yet another excellent example of the YA genre that resonates with all age groups.

Joey Pigza has ADHD. Well aware that he needs the medicinal patches to control his frenetic behavior, Joey has learned that without the patches, he is another person.

When Joey's mother reluctantly allows him to spend six weeks with his father, it is a test to see who is more out of control -- the son or the father.

Throwing away the patches, Joey's self absorbed father encourages Joey to be a man. Surrounded by a oxygen-toting, chain-smoking grandmother, a six-pack an hour father, while Joey's mind and body are bouncing off the wall, he is the voice of logic and he quickly realizes that his self absorbed father has little thought for others.

This is a humorous, yet poignantly sad tale of a child who is wiser than his father. As he listens to hour after hour after hour of his father's stories while his father takes no time or energy to know him, Joey deeply appreciates the two steady forces in his life, his funny, spunky dog and his loving, kind, other-directed mother.

While deprived of his much needed meds, Joey still has the clarity to call his mother to come to the rescue.

Highly recommended!

Joey is going to stay with his dad for the first time. His mother is very nervous, since Joey finally has his ADHD under control. When his dad throws his medications away things start to unravel. The grouchy grandma and barfing dog make this a VERY entertaining read. ( )

I "reread' this one on audio and I still don't think it's quite as good as Joey Pigza Swallows the Key, although Jack Gantos still does an admirable job of reading his own work. ( )

This funny book is about young Joey Pigza going to visit his long lost dad in the city of Pittsburg and his trip did not go as expected he had to join the baseball league and his dad said he has a very good arm and he gets it from his mother and after it seems that he will never be wired he turns wired right in the middle of the baseball game the championship of course his father got mad so he ran out of the baseball feild and into the mall and did i mention dad has a girlfriend her name is Leezy and he got helped by her and he hid from his furios dad and Leezy was lookout for mom that was on her way with no lisence and Joey finnaly made it home. ( )