The Misfits

I read this book when it first came out and managed the young adult section of a bookstore.

More recently, I read this book with my nine year old son. While it endeared to me the first time around, I think as a parent that I like The Misfits even better. I know nine might seem a touch on the young side for this book, but my son was able to process the ideas of bigotry, name-calling, accidental racism, and homophobia without trouble.

I'd suggest this book to any parent who thinks they're kiddo is the right age to learn these concepts, and more broadly to anyone who just wants a good read that covers heavy topics with a few smiles and proud moments along the way.

James Howe does a fantastic job of looking his target audience in the eye show more without giving them too much to handle, or insulting anyone's intelligence along the way. show less

"Sticks and stones may break our bones, but names will break our spirit." Is that a lesson for us all or what?

The first book in the 'misfits' trilogy (so far) introduces us to the gang of five; friends who have come together for support and camaraderie. They are the teased, the bullied, outcasts at school, and worse, even in their own minds.

Don't dare call these kids 'losers' however. They realize that each of them is OK - just the way they are. They decide to take action in the elections for Student Council. They meet opposition from many sides, including the school administrators. But instead of just quietly disappearing, they plan to achieve success in spite of the obstacles. Do they make it? Read the book and find out!

James Howe, show more the author shows a keen ear for the voices of young people, in this case seventh grade. They ring true and make the story that much more believable.

I recommend this book especially for middle school aged folks. It's a fun read and very empowering. I look forward to more books in this series. show less

Well, by reading this book I discovered that James Howe is gay. I knew he wrote [b:Bunnicula] with his wife, Deborah, so I was surprised. Wikipedia informs me he came out late in life. Better late than never, I say!

Anywise, this book has one out-and-proud 12-year-old, who later gets his own book ([b:Totally Joe]). But the narrator in this story is his "chunky" friend Bobby Goodspeed (What a name! He could be a Starfleet captain!). Bobby and Joe, alongside Addie and Skeezie, make up an unpopular, but relatively happy, group of friends at Paintbrush Falls Middle School. They decide to make a run for the student council based first on Addie's absurdly naive notions about minority politics. Later, when Addie's well-intentioned but show more ridiculous idea doesn't pass muster with the principal (she convinces one of the school's few black students to run as president just because he's black), Bobby comes up with another platform on which he and his friends can campaign to win the big election. Bobby's idea has to do with getting students to stop calling each other mean names.

Bobby has some great insights into humanity in this book. For example, even though his boss at work is a grump and kind of a jerk, Bobby tries to see the man as a whole person, which is, I think, something more people should strive to do. Bobby also sees his friends and his widowed father very clearly. His journey in the book is about paying more attention to himself and his potential to do great things.

There were more than a few clunky sentences in the book, and the ending was a little too convenient, but its heart was absolutely in the right place. show less

Bobby Goodspeed and his three friends--Addie Carle, Joe Bunch, and Skeezie Tookis--are the misfits in their middle school. Bobby is fat and quiet, Addie is both very bright and very idealistic (and outspoken), Skeezie cultivates an image somewhere between Elvis and Fonzie, and Joe Bunch is gay.

But the middle school election for the student body government is coming up, and Addie has an idea. She wants them to participate--and not by joining in on one of the existing parties, Democrat and Republican. She wants to launch a third party, the Freedom Party, with the idea that they will represent minority students.

But the school administration is not impressed by their vague platform and the fact that they've managed to recruit a popular show more black student as their presidential candidate. Addie is passionate, but they don't really have a platform.

Then Bobby realizes their real platform has been staring them in the face all along--all the mean, belittling names they've been called since kindergarten--and not just them, of course. It's a torture most kids live through, and it's something the four-member Gang of Five can speak about with eloquence and clarity.

This book takes on some tough issues, but it does so with good humor and a light touch. These kids aren't miserable; they're not the popular kids at school, but for the most part they enjoy their lives. They're not the victims of bullying who are at risk of suicide from the abuse--but they still hate being the targets of name-calling, and their big insight is that everyone else hates being the targets of name-calling, too.

James Howe has a gentle sense of humor and treats all his characters with respect, and this is, as you'd expect from Howe, an excellent story. The bonus extra is that this is a Full Cast Audio recording, with all the excellent production values that that entails.

Recommended.

I bought this book. show less

It occurs to me after 60 years of reading that the books I most enjoy are the ones with a lot of heart. This story has megadoses of heart! Addie and Bobby have been friends forever, but their bond is sealed when they decide to come up with a third party for the school election--the No-Name Party, whose slogan is "Sticks and stones may break our bones, but names will break our spirit." Many good lessons here, relayed in a most entertaining manner. Would like to see this as required reading for all fifth/sixth grade students!

"James Howe's book finds humor in a difficult subject. The subject is bullying and the comedy comes from its narrator, Bobby. Bobby is one of the Gang of Five. The Gang of Five is made of four members--the number five is just to keep people guessing. All four have been teased since early grade school; Bobby is fat, Addie is tall and smart, Skeezie is a troublemaker and Joe Bunch is effeminate early on and comes out by the book's end. Bobby describes how all five learn to stand up for themselves in middle school when they form a third party during elections. Their party, the No-Name party, protests unfairness in general, name calling more specifically. The idea begins when their nemesis teacher, Mrs. Wyman gives Addie the "evil occulus" show more as Addie protests the Pledge. She stands there, Bobby tells us, as "silent as dandruff and every bit as annoying while Mrs. Wyman is doing everything she can to keep from hurling herself across the room...and tearing Addie's liver out with her bare teeth." Humor is how Bobby has weathered his mother's death, his father's drinking, a difficult boss, and years of teasing. Bobby sees the world with good nature and lack of judgment, and the way he sees helps us find humor while he expresses more serious truths. Bobby shocks himself when he invents the No-Name campaign slogan: "Sticks and stones may break our bones, but names will break our spirit." This is a book of self-discovery with a voice so engaging it makes a great read aloud. 2001, Atheneum, $16.00. Ages 10 up."
"Susie Wilde" (Children's Literature) show less

A sweet YA book that doesn't hit you over the head with a lesson. Thanks to John for the recommendation.
*
Started re-reading March 2024 and read 100 pages without realizing/remembering I'd read it before.

"I contend that every act of conscience makes a difference." (Addie, 26)