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Dead End in Norvelt

3.68 of 5 stars 3.68 · rating details · 7,614 ratings · 1,722 reviews

Dead End in Norvelt is the winner of the 2012 Newbery Medal for the year's best contribution to children's literature and the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction!

Melding the entirely true and the wildly fictional, Dead End in Norvelt is a novel about an incredible two months for akid named Jack Gantos, whose plans for vacationexcitement are shot downwhen he is "groun...more

Hardcover, 341 pages

Published September 13th 2011 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)

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Newbery 2012

18th out of 136 books — 545 voters

Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

The Most Deserving Newbery

65th out of 90 books — 1,576 voters

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Sep 01, 2011 Lea rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: acquired-2011, books-i-own, goodreads-wins, kids, read-2011, reviews, ya

I received this as a GoodReads FirstReads giveaway win.

"Dead End In Norvelt" is a book by Jack Gantos about a boy named, well . . . Jack Gantos. The blurb on the back of the book says it's a mix of truth and fantasy, but it's difficult to see where one leaves off and the other begins!

The book begins some time during the early 1960s, with young Jack Gantos earning a summer long grounding after accidentally shooting his father's rifle. Unable to spend the days playing with his best friend, Bunny,...more

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Feb 05, 2012 Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance rated it 5 of 5 stars

There are authors you suspect must be dead. Face it, when you haven’t heard anything from an author in years, you think they must have passed on and perhaps you just missed seeing the obit.

I thought Jack Gantos was dead. Well, I thought he was dead until I saw him at last fall’s Texas Book Festival, alive, amazingly, with Elvis Costello glasses and shirt and pants, like was an image straight from the Kennedy sixties. Oddly, he wasn’t a geezer, either, just a older fellow, very close to my own ag...more

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Mar 08, 2012 Trudy rated it 2 of 5 stars

Dead End in Norvelt was selected as the 2012 Newbery Award Winner. About ten years ago, I made (and met!) a goal to read all the Newbery Award winning books from the inception of the award in 1922 to that date. Since that time, I look forward to the announcement of the year's Newbery winner so that I can read it and keep my achievement current. Winners of this prestigious award are quite often remarkable literary works (as one might expect), but sometimes the selected book makes me shake my head...more Dead End in Norvelt was selected as the 2012 Newbery Award Winner. About ten years ago, I made (and met!) a goal to read all the Newbery Award winning books from the inception of the award in 1922 to that date. Since that time, I look forward to the announcement of the year's Newbery winner so that I can read it and keep my achievement current. Winners of this prestigious award are quite often remarkable literary works (as one might expect), but sometimes the selected book makes me shake my head and wonder what the Newbery selection committee could possibly have been thinking. Unfortunately, Dead End in Norvelt falls into the latter category.

This book belongs in a genre that might be called "how-can-we-get-boys-to-read," complete with fart jokes and baby-talk cursing (cheeze us crust). It is peppered with historical "facts" of dubious authenticity. On page 214, Gantos even has Mrs. Volker, the character spouting most of the "history," tell Jack "If you don't know your history you won't know the difference between the truth and wishful thinking." When Jack wants to know whether what she had told him is truth or wishful thinking, she tells him "Look it up for yourself."

Speaking of research, Gantos has one of the minor characters selling Girl Scout Cookies. The year is 1962, and he has the girl quote a price of 20 cents per box. Ten seconds of research would have been sufficient to determine that the price per box of Girl Scout Thin Mints was 50 cents in the late 1950s and early 1960s. To further expose his ignorance of Girl Scout cookie sales, he later states that this girl is selling the cookies to make money for her family. That's just sloppy, lazy writing.

One final irritation: the author, Jack Gantos, has named his main character...wait for it...Jack Gantos! Is this work of fiction meant to be autobiographical (Lord, I hope not), or is Gantos just that egotistical?

It's a good thing I have had practice as a Cubs fan, because the only thing I can say about the Newbery Award is "Wait 'til next year!"(less)

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Dec 27, 2011 Lisa rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-2011, mock-newbery-2011, tag-2012-13

Dead End in Norvelt offers up a historical comedy that chronicles one summer in the life of young Jack Gantos living in Norvelt, Pennsylvania. Gantos writes a funny, off-beat, and nostalgic tale about childhood growing up in the shadows of World War II, a simpler time in many ways, but also one marked by impending change. You have to like a character who loves "to sniff the insides of books...Because each one has its own special perfume." And who firmly believes that "history isn't dead. It's ev...more

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Feb 07, 2012 Caren rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: children

I see that the reviews for this book are all over the place. I actually really enjoyed it. I don't think it is the best thing I ever read, but it is highly entertaining and a change from the angst-ridden books that often garner the Newbery Medal. It kind of reminded me of some of Richard Peck's books ("A Long Way from Chicago" and "A Year Down Yonder")with the quirky characters and humorous situations. I had really enjoyed Mr. Gantos' Joey Pigza books, and this one follows that format of having...more

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May 17, 2012 Terri rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: childrens-consideration

What was the Newbery Committee thinking? I wish I could give this Newbery winner 3 and a half stars, but that's not an option and, sadly, it doesn't deserve 4 in my mind. Readers will find Jack and the wacky characters who fill his life in 1960s Norvelt, a government-sponsored social experiment in western Pennsylvania, funny and will enjoy the read. However, an award-winning novel for children or adults should be more than amusing. It should have a universal, worthwhile theme and dynamic charact...more What was the Newbery Committee thinking? I wish I could give this Newbery winner 3 and a half stars, but that's not an option and, sadly, it doesn't deserve 4 in my mind. Readers will find Jack and the wacky characters who fill his life in 1960s Norvelt, a government-sponsored social experiment in western Pennsylvania, funny and will enjoy the read. However, an award-winning novel for children or adults should be more than amusing. It should have a universal, worthwhile theme and dynamic characters who grow and change from their experiences, and these two elements are what this historical fiction lacks.

Gantos' child-self is surrounded by a kind, idealistic mother; a restless, sometimes immature father; an elderly neighbor who conveniently invents and embellishes history; and more. While the characters are well-rounded only Jack, our young protagonist, can be called dynamic. He at least learns to appreciate history and develops empathy for others. No one else seems to learn anything at all from their experiences. I found the old Three Dog Night hit "Easy to Be Hard" running through my mind often as I read this slyly ironic tale:

"Easy to be hard. Easy to be cold.
Especially people who care about strangers,
Who care about evil and social injustice.
Do they only care about the bleeding crowd?
How about a needing friend?"

More mature readers may recognize the irony in Norvelt... Jack's mother fiercely espouses the commune-like social justice tenets upon which the town was built yet unfairly punishes her son for obeying his father; several elderly women are murdered, yet there is no anger, no outrage, and no resolution to the crime, just a statement that authorities would probably catch up with the culprit before long; and Miss Volker talks about the importance of history but doesn't hesitate to fabricate it. Gantos' social injustice theme is revealed through these and other small ironies, but it was all so casual and offhand that most of his audience will totally miss it.

Every young reader I talked with thought the events in the book were true. Why? Because the author deliberately gives readers the impression that the novel is a memoir by using himself as the protagonist and his childhood home as the setting. Further, he provides no author note or informatative sources to help sort the real from the imagined. This does a disservice to readers. His tone is light and humorous, the plot is fast-paced and amusing with a hint of mystery, and readers will enjoy it. But Newbery worthy? Like I said, what was the committee thinking?(less)

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Jun 29, 2011 April rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: audio, bea-2011, ya

Dead End In Norvelt by Jack Gantos is a semi-autobiographical young adult book set in the 1960s in a Roosevelt town known as Norvelt, I mention setting because it is an integral piece of the book and the very first thing I think of in describing it.

Read the rest of my review here

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Feb 17, 2012 Joella www.cinjoella.com rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: juvenile, young-adult, historical

Young Jack Gantos is grounded for the summer. His mom grounded him because he followed his dad's instructions to mow down the plot of corn. His dad grounded him because he shot off a Japanese riffle that was loaded (even though Jack didn't load it) and he wasn't supposed to. Now his only "get out of jail free card" is when his mom loans him to Miss Volker to type the town obituaries that she writes for the newspaper.

I love how there are bits of history thrown in the story. I really like how Mis...more

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Oct 31, 2011 Wendy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011-award-possibilities, newbery

I got impatient with this about halfway through. Occasional moments of clever brilliance, but Newbery-wise, I can't see this standing out in a field that includes Okay For Now. Also, the punk kid with quirky elderly neighbor plot ought to be locked in the vault for the next ten years or so.

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Jul 08, 2011 Angela rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: middle-grade

I was lucky enough to experience this via Advanced LISTENING Copy. This means I got to hear Jack Gantos do Jack Gantos. It was a genuine summer treat.

The real charm here is the colorful cast of characters that include Jack's parents, childhood friend, neighbors and quirky community members. While there is a grim aspect to the story, there is thoughtfulness in the historical bytes and socialist ideals that contrast to a burgeoning capitalist community.

I don't mean to make it sound too fancy. It...more

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Jul 19, 2012 Tirzah rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: juvenile-fic

Let me start out by confessing I only read Dead End in Norvelt because it won the Newbery. Now I am not one of those who only read popular books that won awards or are the New York Times bestseller list. I read other books too, but I do read Newbery winners since I am curious to see what the ALA deem as "winnable."

Although the book held my interest, I did not really get into the storyline or the characters as much as I would have liked. It was sort of a different book. It does hold lots of hist...more

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Aug 04, 2012 Emily Crowe rated it 4 of 5 stars

Just picked up the audio of this book for $5 at a second hand music store in town and I'm about halfway through the first disc. With all of the critical attention this book received, I'm looking forward to the rest of it.

Once I figured out that Jack Gantos the author was being intentionally funny, and that he'd written the character of Jack Gantos as unintentionally funny, the book took off for me. This was a fantastic audio book experience!

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Apr 13, 2013 Kyle Turck rated it 5 of 5 stars

Dead End in Norvelt is a brilliantly written book from the mind of Jack Gantos and is much deserving of the Newberry award that it received in 2012. The story centers around a teenage boy named Jack who is spending the summer being grounded in his dying town of Norvelt. It is quite obvious that the author has placed himself into the role of the lead character, using his past memories and maybe embellishing on some of them to create a better story, but the real fun with this book is that you neve...more

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Apr 07, 2013 Biz German rated it 3 of 5 stars

I liked a lot of things about this book. I really liked Jack. I think Jack is great. The main overarching plot line/ending was obvious and guessable at a third of the way through the book (and I am, seriously, so bad at guessing endings/seeing things coming. At all. Ever.) But I didn't mind because the details of the day-to-day getting there were so nice.
There were a lot of really great lessons in this book: the importance of history, the value and goodness of solitude, the strength of communi...more

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Apr 04, 2013 Lauren Fogg rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction

This historical fiction story is written by Jack Gantos who won a Newbery Medal for this book in 2012. It's a story about a young Jack Gantos grows into a responsible and caring young man over one summer vacation. His interest in his father's Japanese souvenirs from the war get him grounded for the entire summer. His mother instructs Jack to help an elderly lady, Mrs. Volker, down the road as part of his punishment and Jack gradually begins to cherish his time spent with this wise old woman who...more

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Apr 01, 2013 Sara Larson rated it 3 of 5 stars

Dead End in Norvelt is about a boy named Jack, who lives in a small town called Norvelt. One summer, Jack gets grounded by his mother for getting into trouble. The only time he is allowed to leave the house is when he helps an old lady named Miss Volker, who lives just down the street. Miss Volker is an original resident of Norvelt, and she knows all about the history of the town and its people. Miss Volker also happens to be the town medical examiner, and in addition, she writes the obituaries...more

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Mar 28, 2013 Linsay Piersawl rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction, caldecott-or-newbery

At first glance, I wasn’t very interested in the book. The illustrations on the cover of the book weren’t horrible but weren’t something I think I would have noticed or liked enough to pick up and read on my own. This story is written about a young boy named Jack Gantos and his experiences while living in Norvelt, Pennsylvania in the 1960’s. Jack is definitely a character and a bit unusual compared to other twelve-year old boys. I found it a little humorous that Jack suffered from chronic nosebl...more

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Mar 28, 2013 Jessica Vanhemel rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction

At first I was apprehensive about reading this book, the cover illustration didn't really add to my willingness to read the book. However within the first few pages I was really drawn into the book, the humor with which Jack Gantos writes is extremely entertaining. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, the only qualm that I had was that I feel it abruptly ended, it seemed like it was just getting going and then it was over.

This story is about a boy named Jack Gantos, he is one of the strangest boys y...more At first I was apprehensive about reading this book, the cover illustration didn't really add to my willingness to read the book. However within the first few pages I was really drawn into the book, the humor with which Jack Gantos writes is extremely entertaining. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, the only qualm that I had was that I feel it abruptly ended, it seemed like it was just getting going and then it was over.

This story is about a boy named Jack Gantos, he is one of the strangest boys you will ever meet. He has a chronic nosebleed problem, whenever he gets nervous or in trouble he starts to bleed. Most of his clothing is stained with blood. The story begins with he playing with a gun that his father brought back from the war, he accidentally shoots it, he didn't know it was loaded. His mother threatens to ground him and tell his father, but she doesn't tell him yet. The story is set during the summer, and it has the potential to be the longest summer of Jack's life. When Jack's father returns from working odd jobs in other towns he has brought back with him an airplane that he intends to fix and then fly away from Norvelt. He told his wife that he is worried about an atomic bomb attack and plans to build a bomb shelter, what he didn't tell her was where he planned out building this shelter, its right where the crop of corn that she has planted. He has Jack plow down the field, which really upsets his mother, he is then grounded for the remainder of the summer. His mother has loaned him to Miss Volker, she is the local obituary writer and has such bad arthritis that she can no longer write the obits by herself. She uses Jack to write out the story, then type it up and deliver it to the local newspaper office. Along the way through the summer, there are several deaths among the older community members, a surprisingly large amount of deaths. Miss Volker is also the coroner of the town, she rules the deaths as natural because all of the deaths are from the original Norvelt founding members. Throughout the chapters are tidbits of history sprinkled in, Miss Volker connects the deaths to what has happened throughout history. Eventually the police are called in because of all of the deaths, at first they all think that it is Miss Volker so that she can leave the town. Miss Volker made a deal with Eleanor Roosevelt, whom the town is named after, to see to Norvelt original families until they were all gone. One by one they are all dying and it leaves only Miss Volker and Mr. Spizz left, he has been trying to marry her from the beginning when they were younger but Miss Volker was very dedicated to her job as a nurse. Eventually it comes out that it was Mr. Spizz killing all of the older community members.

This story really contains everything kids are looking for in a story, humor, suspense, mystery, history facts, and much much more. This book would be good for older students, specifically fifth grade or maybe a high reader in fourth grade. They would understand and appreciate the content of the story. (less)

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Mar 27, 2013 Cameron Kisselbaugh rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction

Jack Ganto's "Dead End in Norvelt" is a Newbery Medal Award winner and is a humorous tale of a young boy named Jack Gantos in a small town called Norvelt. If you could imagine the goofiest kid, Jack is it. He suffers from uncontrollable nosebleeds that seem to erupt out of him like a geyser at a moments notice when he finds himself getting nervous or excited. After Jack is grounded got the summer, he becomes Miss Volker's, the town medical examiner, assistant in typing the obituaries. This relat...more Jack Ganto's "Dead End in Norvelt" is a Newbery Medal Award winner and is a humorous tale of a young boy named Jack Gantos in a small town called Norvelt. If you could imagine the goofiest kid, Jack is it. He suffers from uncontrollable nosebleeds that seem to erupt out of him like a geyser at a moments notice when he finds himself getting nervous or excited. After Jack is grounded got the summer, he becomes Miss Volker's, the town medical examiner, assistant in typing the obituaries. This relationship is one of the most heartwarming connections I have read in a long time because although there is a significant age difference, the love they both have for history gives them a unique bond. It even comes to a point that Jack is referred to as her "boyfriend", but she prefers the "pet". I laughed out loud at the statement. As the summer continues in the story, Gantos does an exceptional job keeping the story fresh by adding in clever plot twists and crazy events.

Throughout the novel, the author does an amazing job of tying in key moments in history to the story; whether it be Cortez's devastation of the Aztecs or the tale of King Arthur and his court, he finds away to add it in where it would make sense. This is an exceptionally hard task in the fact that a lot is going on in this minuscule town; from the intimidation of Hell's Angels bikers to the mysterious deaths of all the original inhabitants of Norvelt, Gantos keeps it interesting with the humor and tidbits of history he throws in to give the story depth. There are times that the history can get long winded and was slowly lowering my interest in the novel, but after I plowed through these sections, I was greeted with pivotal moments in the story. These moments keep everything from becoming stale and history book like.

I immediately snickered at the sight of the illustrations on the cover of this book. I, at first, did not know what the book was really about until I read the summary on the inside cover and knew that exactly what the cover was trying to tell the audience. Coming from a small town, I felt like I was stuck and never going to escape. This image portrays that on all front. It shows a boy's face that is covered by a road sign with the title stating "Dead End in Norvelt". This shows how the main character is stuck in the faltering town of Norvelt and there is only one way out of a dead end.

I couldn't bring myself to give this book 5 stars even though it was a Newbery Medal novel. I felt that all to often the plot would drag on either through Jack's recollection of history or the several obituaries that Jack typed up. Also, I felt that Jack's best friend Bunny should have had a more important role in the novel, but instead, she seemed to be more of a background character that was just their to nag Jack about his flaws. This book is, though, a beautiful written historical fiction book that accurately describes the attitudes of Americans during the Red Scare period of the 50s and 60s. The Dad's paranoia of the "commies" taking over everything and his belief that they have infiltrated the normal American's lives is spot on, and it provides an accurate account of the mindset that most US citizens had.

If I were to introduce this book to a class, I would have it be given to upper-level 4th grade up to the 6th grade. The content is rich enough that it would keep them interested, and also, it would educate them on important events that shaped the world. History is a difficult subject to teach to younger children because few of them understand why it is important to learn about something that doesn't affect them. Incorporating these key moments in a fantastic fiction novel such as "Dead End in Norvelt" is a great way to guide them into it. (less)

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Mar 27, 2013 Bailey Ubellacker rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: class-novels

Jack Gantos was a name I had heard many times both in the classroom, at the library, and in the elementary school settings. After reading Dead End in Norvelt I believe all the hubbub was completely accurate and relevant. The front cover illustration helps to build the ambiguity and only give a small amount of preview to the novel. I like that the image is bright, clear, but not too revealing. The novel works to quickly captivate and trap the reader as he starts the story out as a young boy, who...more Jack Gantos was a name I had heard many times both in the classroom, at the library, and in the elementary school settings. After reading Dead End in Norvelt I believe all the hubbub was completely accurate and relevant. The front cover illustration helps to build the ambiguity and only give a small amount of preview to the novel. I like that the image is bright, clear, but not too revealing. The novel works to quickly captivate and trap the reader as he starts the story out as a young boy, who the audience later learns to be Jack Gantos himself, playing with his father’s old war novelties and weapons. We are an outsider watching Jack play pretend as he watches a far away drive in screen. We learn much insight about how his family unit behaves during the following sequence of events.
Jack has his father’s old gun out and unknowing that it is loaded points it towards the Japanese characters on the drive in screen. To his surprise, when he pulls the trigger the bullet shoots out and scares his neighbor. Jack’s nose bleeds at very little thing, so you could imagine the amount of blood pouring out of his nose then. His mother is very upset, yet still promises not to tell his father who is away on a business trip .The setting of the book is in a small mining town in Pennsylvania, in the 1950’s during the scare of the atom bomb. This content influences much of the novel as Jack’s father buys an old war plane and has Jack destroys his mom’s corn crops in the backyard to make room for the planes runway. The only way Jack’s father gets away with it was saying that they would build a bomb shelter, but that is a lie. Jack gets punished for his actions and is completely grounded except for helping his new old friend Miss Volker in her medical exanimation endeavors because of her hand condition and his books. Jack loves to read about history and is very well cultured.
Jack Gantos finds himself in many adventures including a homemade surgery to fix his constantly bleeding nose, a creepy encounter with a killed Hell’s Angel with his friend Bunny, and learning to drive Miss Volker around in the car that she wants to give him after she dies. This Novel is truly unique and splendidly portrayed of the life of a young boy and his mystery, history, and humor of his small town of Norvelt where their only claim to fame comes from Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt.
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Mar 27, 2013 Madison Johnson added it

Shelves: historical-fiction

Dead End in Norvelt offers up a historical comedy that chronicles one summer in the life of young Jack Gantos living in Norvelt, Pennsylvania. I thought that this book was okay. It is not something that I would have picked up at a bookstore and bought for myself. I think this is definitely more of a book for a guy. Twelve-year-old Jack Gantos is plagued by nosebleeds. Shocking news or sudden exposure to disturbing images will easily incite a blood flow. Jack finds himself pulled in different dir...more

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Mar 13, 2013 Kelly Buntin rated it 3 of 5 stars

Well...... It doesn't get my "blue ribbon". I read young adult lit to stay in tune with what is available for readers of all ages. It is a must each year, to read the Newberry awarded book. I stuck it out and towards the end , I found myself taking notes on a few of the author's phrases about history and how history is taught/remembered/altered. Many of the threads sewn in the story were being woven together into a satisfying crazy quilt but then , it fell flat for me at the end. There is a lot...more

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Mar 04, 2013 Gale rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: humor-young-adult, newbery-books

Review for: DEAD END IN NORVELT
Grounded for the Summer—Morally Grounded for Life

What a delightful adolescent mystery: the summer poor Jack
was grounded for firing off a Japanese war rifle--which he didn’t
realize was loaded. Raised in a backwater town out in the sticks this boy suffers several ongoing problems: recurring nosebleeds (his Little Problem), no boy pals, and being manipulated by adults as well as by his only friend. Sworn to secrecy or forced to make unconscionable “deals” (oh, what...more Review for: DEAD END IN NORVELT
Grounded for the Summer—Morally Grounded for Life

What a delightful adolescent mystery: the summer poor Jack
was grounded for firing off a Japanese war rifle--which he didn’t
realize was loaded. Raised in a backwater town out in the sticks this boy suffers several ongoing problems: recurring nosebleeds (his Little Problem), no boy pals, and being manipulated by adults as well as by his only friend. Sworn to secrecy or forced to make unconscionable “deals” (oh, what a web we weave…) Jack’s moral compass is painfully skewed. Shovel in hand he becomes immersed ever deeper into adult intrigue and frequent poor kid judgment, the kid struggles to survive the summer he turns 11.

Owing its strange name to the influence of former First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt--an activist for the working class—the place where Mom grew up is dying from the inside out. Folks move away or Want to (Dad in particular). Confused and conflicted Jack is sworn to many secrets, or constrained to disobey one parent in order to obey the other. All too easily lead astray by mean old Mr. Spizz and whack-job Bunny, the boy fears for his life, as well as for his diminished liberty. Will his father succeed in restoring and flying an old plane, while Jack pretends to dig a bomb shelter? He soon realizes that Parental Appeasement is a fine line and a fine art.

In addition to Jack’s personal woes there is serious mischief
afoot in this town, as many old ladies are dying off at an alarming rate—the original Norvelters. Allowed out only to help Miss Volker, an aged nurse/Medical Examiner with crippled hands, Jack finds himself learning about history—both worldwide and local--as he types up the obits. Is someone buying poison for more than just the rats at the town dump? Will Miss Volker succumb to the persistent but nonexistent charms of her old beau? Will they solve the mystery of the loaded rifle which opens the story? Will Jack’s family help the town kick the bucket by moving away? Where have all the old houses gone…to West Virginia? Secret and subtle motives weave literary intrigue in this delightful spoof of a summer ruined; a fun page-turner which keeps kids of all ages guessing until the very end!

May 30, 2012

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Feb 28, 2013 Jen rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013, children-s-chapter-books, historical-fiction, mother-daughter-book-group, for-kids, truthiness

I'm very torn about this book.
I love the occasional flashes of brilliance when the reader is asked to think about socialism vs. capitalism. I enjoyed the boy humor that made it seem like a Richard Peck novel or The Christmas Story. I liked having a setting that wasn't glamorous yet still held its own (As a born Midwesterner, I love when anyone can make a non-coastal state sound moderately intriguing.) and the end of the book had some whiz bang excitement!
Nonetheless, I'm wondering why the Newbe...more

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Feb 28, 2013 Bailey rated it 5 of 5 stars

Dates read:12/20/12 - 1/12/13
Title: Dead end in Norvelt
Author:Jack Gantos
Who is the main character:Jack
List the supporting characters:Mom,Dad,Bunny,Police:
Describe the conflict:N/A
Describe the resoulution:N/A
Name the point of veiw:3rd person
Rate:i liked it
What is the setting:Norvelt

What did I think:
The book is about a boy named Jack,who gets into some trouble when he almost shoots himself and mowes down his moms corn feild when she told him tipicly not to.So of course Jack got himself grounded...more

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Feb 23, 2013 L13_Meghan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fic

What a great historical fiction book for young readers! I read this book on my iPad and really enjoyed it! This book tells the story of a boy named Jack Gantos, who many young boys will be able to relate to. He typically makes many mistakes while growing up, but seems to always have good intentions. Jack ends up being assigned to helping an unusual neighbor over a few months. During this time, he ends up typewriting obituaries for people that have passed away in his "utopian" town. Among these p...more

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Feb 10, 2013 Alicia rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: boy, historical, humor

I kick myself for not reading this earlier because it's such a great read! Jack is a constant nose-bleeder who is trying to escape the house even though he's grounded. The way he can is by working with Miss Volker to write the obituaries of Norvelt's oldest residents (of which she is one). Her promise to Eleanor Roosevelt was to write the town's history until the last remaining residents passed to preserve the history and she's got a knack of combining history with Norvelt's history.

Yet Jack ge...more

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Feb 07, 2013 Elizabeth rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: children-s-books

Melding the entirely true and the wildly fictional, Dead End in Norvelt is a novel about an incredible two months for a kid named Jack Gantos, whose plans for vacation excitement are shot down when he is "grounded for life" by his feuding parents, and whose nose spews bad blood at every little shock he gets. But plenty of excitement (and shocks) are coming Jack's way once his mom loans him out to help a fiesty old neighbor with a most unusual chore—typewriting obituaries filled with stories abou...more

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Jan 24, 2013 Andy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Jack Gantos’s Dead End in Norvelt successfully combines autobiography with fiction and illustrates an incredible two months of the author’s life when he was 11 years old. Grounded for the summer after mowing down his mother’s corn on orders from his dad, Jack has to help his old neighbor write obituaries for the people who founded the utopian town of Norvelt. He encounters even more exciting things, such as flying his dad’s army surplus plane, accidentally firing his dad’s WWII era Japanese rifl...more

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Jan 18, 2013 Smithmott rated it 4 of 5 stars

It's not very often that one gets to read an uplifting, mysterious, laugh-out-loud young adult book about murder. And it's not very often that one gets to read an uplifiting, mysterious, and laugh-out-loud book about an unsuccessful social experiment in the United States. But Jack Gantos created such an endearing story in Dead in Norvelt.

Told in first person, it is the story of a boy grounded for the summer. The only time he is allowed out of the house is to help a snappy elderly woman with crip...more

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About Jack Gantos

Jack Gantos is an American author of children's books renowned for his portrayal of fictional Joey Pigza, a boy with ADHD. Gantos has won a number of awards, including the Newbery Honor, the Printz Honor, and the Sibert Honor from the American Library Association, and he has been a finalist for the National Book Award. His newest book, The Love Curse of the Rumbaughs (2006), deals with twins, euge...more Jack Gantos is an American author of children's books renowned for his portrayal of fictional Joey Pigza, a boy with ADHD. Gantos has won a number of awards, including the Newbery Honor, the Printz Honor, and the Sibert Honor from the American Library Association, and he has been a finalist for the National Book Award. His newest book, The Love Curse of the Rumbaughs (2006), deals with twins, eugenics, taxidermy (in particular, human taxidermy), and implicit incest.

Gantos was born in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania to son of construction superintendent John Gantos and banker Elizabeth (Weaver) Gantos. The seeds for Jack Gantos' writing career were planted in sixth grade, when he read his sister's diary and decided he could write better than she could. Born in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania, and raised in Barbados and South Florida, Mr. Gantos began collecting anecdotes in grade school and later gathered them into stories.

He moved to a Caribbean island (St Croix) and began to train as a builder. He soon realized that construction was not his forté and started saving for college. He decided to move to complete high school and while staying in a motel a friend introduced him to hash. He soon hooked up with a drug smuggler and was offered a chance to make 10 000 dollars by sailing to New York with 2,000 pounds of hash. With an English psycho captain on board they set off to the big city. Once there they hung out at the Chelsea hotel and Gantos carried on dreaming about college. Then, in Jacks own words, "The shit hit the fan" and the F.B.I. burst in on him. He managed to escape and hid out in the very same motel he was living during high school. However, he saw sense and turned himself in. He was sentenced to one and a half years in prison, which he describes in his novel -Hole in my life-. however he found a plan that involved getting him released in prison and accepted into college. It worked.

He received his BFA and his MA both from Emerson College. While in college, Jack began working on picture books with an illustrator friend. In 1976, they published their first book, Rotten Ralph. Mr. Gantos continued writing children's books and began teaching courses in children's book writing. He developed the master's degree program in children's book writing at Emerson College in Boston, and is now teaching in the Vermont College M.F.A. program for children's book writers.

He married art dealer Anne A. Lower on November 11, 1989. The couple has one child, Mabel Grace, and they live in Boston, Massachusetts.

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Quotes from Dead End in Norvelt

“...who proved that you don't have to do what your parents want, or what your boyfriend wants, for you to be happy. You just have to be yourself, for there is no love greater than self love” — 11 people liked it

“Don't ever go to war. Even if you win, the battle is never over inside you.” — 6 people liked it

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