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There's a Girl in My Hammerlock
Thirteen-year-old Maisie joins her school's formerly all-male wrestling team and tries to last through the season, despite opposition from other students, her best friend, and her own teammates.
208 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 1991
21 people are currently reading
473 people want to read
About the author
Jerry Spinelli
114 books4,040 followersWhen Jerry Spinelli was a kid, he wanted to grow up to be either a cowboy or a baseball player. Lucky for us he became a writer instead.
He grew up in rural Pennsylvania and went to college at Gettysburg College and Johns Hopkins University. He has published more than 25 books and has six children and 16 grandchildren.
Jerry Spinelli began writing when he was 16 — not much older than the hero of his book Maniac Magee. After his high school football team won a big game, his classmates ran cheering through the streets — all except Spinelli, who went home and wrote a poem about the victory. When his poem was published in the local paper, Spinelli decided to become a writer instead of a major-league shortstop.
In most of his books, Spinelli writes about events and feelings from his own childhood. He also gets a lot of material from his seven adventurous kids! Spinelli and his wife, Eileen, also a children's book author, live in Pennsylvania.
He grew up in rural Pennsylvania and went to college at Gettysburg College and Johns Hopkins University. He has published more than 25 books and has six children and 16 grandchildren.
Jerry Spinelli began writing when he was 16 — not much older than the hero of his book Maniac Magee. After his high school football team won a big game, his classmates ran cheering through the streets — all except Spinelli, who went home and wrote a poem about the victory. When his poem was published in the local paper, Spinelli decided to become a writer instead of a major-league shortstop.
In most of his books, Spinelli writes about events and feelings from his own childhood. He also gets a lot of material from his seven adventurous kids! Spinelli and his wife, Eileen, also a children's book author, live in Pennsylvania.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 95 reviews
September 14, 2022
When Maisie Potter doesn’t make the cheerleading squad, she decides to try something completely different, and tries out for the wrestling team. Though no one tries to stop her from trying out, Maisie is the first girl in her school’s history to join an all-male sport. When she makes the team, suddenly the other members are awkward around her, and boys from other school forfeit their matches rather than wrestle against a girl! It is only through the support of her parents and her fair-minded coach that Maisie makes it through the season and proves that great wrestlers can be boys or girls.
Co-ed sports are much more common these days than they were when I first read this book as a middle schooler. Back then, I can remember that many gym classes were still divided by gender, and that when the boys worked on a wrestling unit, the girls practiced either Tae Bo or self-defense. I was not at all a sporty kid, but I liked Jerry Spinelli, so I’m sure my decision to read the book had to do with his name on the cover more than anything else. Still, Maisie is such an irresistible character, it is no surprise to me that I grew so attached to her that I bought a paperback copy of this book and carried it around in my backpack for months. I also remember really liking that Maisie had a preschool little sister - and it drove me nuts that I never knew what P.K. stood for.
Though there is a fair amount of romance in this book, and a lot of catty gossip about a popular girl named Liz Lampley, both of which might appeal exclusively to girls, the sports material makes it equally appealing to male and female readers. Though much of the story focuses on how Maisie is treated because she is a girl, there is also a lot about team building, trying one’s best, and competing to win. Though some of the gender issues might seem odd to today’s kids, who might very well have female classmates who do wrestle, the politics of middle school, and the excitement of performing well at a sporting event, will ring true for kids now as they did for me in the early 1990s.
Old-School read-alikes for There’s Girl in My Hammerlock include There’s a Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom by Louis Sachar and Nothing But the Truth by Avi. Newer read-alikes about sporty girls include American Girl’s McKenna books, the Go for Gold Gymnast series, and the Dairy Queen books by Catherine Gilbert Murdock.
Co-ed sports are much more common these days than they were when I first read this book as a middle schooler. Back then, I can remember that many gym classes were still divided by gender, and that when the boys worked on a wrestling unit, the girls practiced either Tae Bo or self-defense. I was not at all a sporty kid, but I liked Jerry Spinelli, so I’m sure my decision to read the book had to do with his name on the cover more than anything else. Still, Maisie is such an irresistible character, it is no surprise to me that I grew so attached to her that I bought a paperback copy of this book and carried it around in my backpack for months. I also remember really liking that Maisie had a preschool little sister - and it drove me nuts that I never knew what P.K. stood for.
Though there is a fair amount of romance in this book, and a lot of catty gossip about a popular girl named Liz Lampley, both of which might appeal exclusively to girls, the sports material makes it equally appealing to male and female readers. Though much of the story focuses on how Maisie is treated because she is a girl, there is also a lot about team building, trying one’s best, and competing to win. Though some of the gender issues might seem odd to today’s kids, who might very well have female classmates who do wrestle, the politics of middle school, and the excitement of performing well at a sporting event, will ring true for kids now as they did for me in the early 1990s.
Old-School read-alikes for There’s Girl in My Hammerlock include There’s a Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom by Louis Sachar and Nothing But the Truth by Avi. Newer read-alikes about sporty girls include American Girl’s McKenna books, the Go for Gold Gymnast series, and the Dairy Queen books by Catherine Gilbert Murdock.
February 16, 2011
Just finished this excellent young adult story. Spinelli has done it again -- spun a story I could hardly put down and that pulled all the loose ends together without tying them too tight.
Maisie is an athletic type junior high girl. She was Athlete of the Year, playing on the basketball team, but she didn't really like basketball, so now she's going out for wrestling.
Spinelli wrote this in 1991, when girls were just beginning to break into sports that had been the bastions of boys only for so long. My students don't seem to think it's any big deal, for a girl to wrestle, but I can remember when it was unheard of, and can imagine parents saying many of the things the newspaper reports in this story. Parents claiming it's unladylike, and accusing the school of promoting pornography and teaching immorality.
Maisie is a typical teenager, with a crush on a boy, a best friend who betrays her, and a very supportive mother. Her journey into self-discovery, and forging her own path, are enlightening and inspiring. Spinelli tells Maisie's story with fidelity, pathos and humor. I'm eventually going to have to collect all of his work. He's always an enjoyable read.
Maisie is an athletic type junior high girl. She was Athlete of the Year, playing on the basketball team, but she didn't really like basketball, so now she's going out for wrestling.
Spinelli wrote this in 1991, when girls were just beginning to break into sports that had been the bastions of boys only for so long. My students don't seem to think it's any big deal, for a girl to wrestle, but I can remember when it was unheard of, and can imagine parents saying many of the things the newspaper reports in this story. Parents claiming it's unladylike, and accusing the school of promoting pornography and teaching immorality.
Maisie is a typical teenager, with a crush on a boy, a best friend who betrays her, and a very supportive mother. Her journey into self-discovery, and forging her own path, are enlightening and inspiring. Spinelli tells Maisie's story with fidelity, pathos and humor. I'm eventually going to have to collect all of his work. He's always an enjoyable read.
March 27, 2010
This was a really good book, it was certainly a page turner. The story is about a girl named Maisie Potter who joins her school's wrestling team. For a girl to be on the wrestling team is a big deal. Everybody is talking about Maisie and there are a hundred rumors going around about her. But Maisie is a very tough and strong person, so even though EVERYBODY is gossiping about her she still goes to wrestling practice. Even when people boo for her at the wrestling meets she still doesn't quit.
By joining the wrestling team Maisie had to go through alot., Her best friend wouldn't hang out with her because of all the rumors. People thought she was crazy, her older brother teased her and more. This story tells people to do what they want to do even if it's out of the norm and people think you're crazy.
Maisie was also very determined at one point she wanted to quit wrestling because of how hard the practices were, but she still kept going to practice even when the rumors were flying and when the practices were hard.
By joining the wrestling team Maisie had to go through alot., Her best friend wouldn't hang out with her because of all the rumors. People thought she was crazy, her older brother teased her and more. This story tells people to do what they want to do even if it's out of the norm and people think you're crazy.
Maisie was also very determined at one point she wanted to quit wrestling because of how hard the practices were, but she still kept going to practice even when the rumors were flying and when the practices were hard.
March 19, 2021
For starters, this is one of Spinelli's books that's maybe meant for a little bit more mature of an audience - we've got gross tongue kissing and ear licking (ew!) and a few other details that definitely pushes this into a Middle Grades book.
That being said, there are lots of things that make this a great read for middle schoolers. First, it's pretty clear straight from the start this is a book about challenging gender norms. At the same time, there are some dynamics in here that didn't follow the usual trope. Maisie's best friend is disgusted when Maisie tries out for the wrestling team. The entire book I waited for Maisie and Holly to make up, but they never did! Paint me surprised - best friends in middle grades books nearly ALWAYS get "back together" after the best friend realizes how brave the other was being by going against gender norms. We don't get that here and I LIKE IT. It feels much more realistic. I also like Maisie as a narrator. She's funny and a tad dramatic but not in an over the top way.
Some things I didn't like and that need to be called out. There's some non-sexual fetishization of darker skin in here. Maisie's friend Tina visits her home and Maisie's little sister is shocked by Tina's skin color. She immediately touches her face and asks if she too can grow up to be brown. Whether you read this with your class or if your child reads this independently, a conversation needs to be had around this scene and the inappropriateness of TK's actions. Black and brown folks aren't part of the world for white folks to touch and gawk over.
Overall, this book had me laughing quite a few times and I think it's worth the read!
That being said, there are lots of things that make this a great read for middle schoolers. First, it's pretty clear straight from the start this is a book about challenging gender norms. At the same time, there are some dynamics in here that didn't follow the usual trope. Maisie's best friend is disgusted when Maisie tries out for the wrestling team. The entire book I waited for Maisie and Holly to make up, but they never did! Paint me surprised - best friends in middle grades books nearly ALWAYS get "back together" after the best friend realizes how brave the other was being by going against gender norms. We don't get that here and I LIKE IT. It feels much more realistic. I also like Maisie as a narrator. She's funny and a tad dramatic but not in an over the top way.
Some things I didn't like and that need to be called out. There's some non-sexual fetishization of darker skin in here. Maisie's friend Tina visits her home and Maisie's little sister is shocked by Tina's skin color. She immediately touches her face and asks if she too can grow up to be brown. Whether you read this with your class or if your child reads this independently, a conversation needs to be had around this scene and the inappropriateness of TK's actions. Black and brown folks aren't part of the world for white folks to touch and gawk over.
Overall, this book had me laughing quite a few times and I think it's worth the read!
September 3, 2009
I LOVE THIS book it's so inspirational and it makes me want to do things that seem impossible.
I have read a little more in my book. I have discovered that Maisie's nickname is slime because she gets out of pins easily. She also got a new pet, it's a hooded rat.
I have finished my book... i loved chapter 33. but i hated what Eric did to Maisie in the car!
I have read a little more in my book. I have discovered that Maisie's nickname is slime because she gets out of pins easily. She also got a new pet, it's a hooded rat.
I have finished my book... i loved chapter 33. but i hated what Eric did to Maisie in the car!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 19, 2018
I think I read this all in one night. Maisie deciding to try out for the wrestling team seems like mostly a whim based on a crush, and in the process of making the team and falling in love with wrestling, she discovers who her true allies and friends are. The bullying/backlash that she deals with is the main drama of the book, and it's both sad and interesting to see the many forms that it takes (losing friends, getting characterized as a slut, guy wrestlers not wanting to wrestle with her and/or not taking her seriously and letting her win, opposition from parents/community members...). She's a spunky character to root for without seeming unrealistic or like a caricature of an athletic girl. Throughout the course of the book, she endures a lot, . Not the deepest take on this topic, but considering that it was published in 1991 and a girl joining wrestling would still seem pretty edgy, decently well done.
November 1, 2017
One of Spinelli's great sports novels, There's a Girl in my Hammerlock is a story about Maisie and her journey as the schools only female wrestler. Originally hoping to join cheerleading, Maisie barely misses the cut, so in order to get closer to her middle school crush she joins the wrestling team. Her work does not come easy, facing adversity from, parents, coaches, and teammates, Maisie powers through and does not give up on the sport she eventually comes to love. The novel is very relatable to JUV readers, not only girls, but any of your students interested in sports would find aspects to connect to. It would also be great for teachers who want to talk about issues of gender with their students. Maisie wrestling breaks the community, but she does not give up. Many great conversations could be had with students about what is expected of men and women and how these traditions are steeped in our culture.
June 16, 2023
I would give this 5 stars if it weren’t for some of the inappropriate remarks, thoughts, comments, and acts spread about the book.
“There’s A Girl In My Hammerlock” is one of Spinelli’s more rough and rigid works, compared to that of the more gentle and “innocent” Stargirl series which I loved and relate to.
But in his most Spinelli Way, the author made this specific read extremely relatable to me as a girl who loves sports and is often left to play with boys, as there is a rare female interest in some of the sports I engage in.
I ironically don’t wrestle, yet some feelings and experiences Maisie resonate with me.
I highly recommend it.
Made me appreciate and love the athlete’s life more.
Will read the beginning again when in need of inspiration and someone to relate to.
P.S. the ending was brilliantly realistic, but Maisie was at peace and quite joyful.
Tackles a whole new level of appreciating one’s life in a Middle School/YA(?) book.
“There’s A Girl In My Hammerlock” is one of Spinelli’s more rough and rigid works, compared to that of the more gentle and “innocent” Stargirl series which I loved and relate to.
But in his most Spinelli Way, the author made this specific read extremely relatable to me as a girl who loves sports and is often left to play with boys, as there is a rare female interest in some of the sports I engage in.
I ironically don’t wrestle, yet some feelings and experiences Maisie resonate with me.
I highly recommend it.
Made me appreciate and love the athlete’s life more.
Will read the beginning again when in need of inspiration and someone to relate to.
P.S. the ending was brilliantly realistic, but Maisie was at peace and quite joyful.
Tackles a whole new level of appreciating one’s life in a Middle School/YA(?) book.
February 20, 2018
This book was one of my favourites when I was a kid who was not into the world of dating that was looming inevitably on the horizon, the way Maisie felt about her crush on a boy—a mixture of disgust and curiosity—was familiar. There's also a couple of things that I didn't even realise I latched onto until way later in life that I am almost certain Spinelli did not intend to include, but when you're an isolated queer kid you will read what you need into anything.
I have a way longer review over on my blog, but in short: this is a solid little story about recognising your own value, hard as it is when you're a young teen.
I have a way longer review over on my blog, but in short: this is a solid little story about recognising your own value, hard as it is when you're a young teen.
November 12, 2017
There's A Girl In My Hammerlock is one of Jerry Spinelli's more ambitious works that tackles the tough theme of gender role expectations for young women (which I can imagine was even tougher in 1991 when this book was published). The book ultimately succeeds because this theme doesn't overwhelm the voice of the narrator, 13 year-old Maisie Potter, who joins (and sticks out) the boys' wrestling team for reasons even she doesn't fully understand. As usual Spinelli's character-crafting shines in Maisie's internal dialogue, which feels honest and true-to life.
November 29, 2021
When thirteen year old Maisie Kay Potter decides to join the all-male wrestling team at her school, she both shocks and amazes everyone around her, and the fallout and push back received is to be expected. But there is more happening behind the scenes of the motivating factor as to why Maisie decides to become a grappler, and she learns the true meaning of Coach Cappelli's motto: "It takes more to be a champion."
October 8, 2019
When you consider that female wrestling was not allowed in the Olympics until 2004 (after 100 years of Olympic wrestling) it is easy to see why this book is interesting (having been written in the early 1990s).
13 year old Maisie trades school basketball for the wrestling team and finds herself enduring the mockery and disdain of boys, girls and adults alike.
Some nice humour and insights.
13 year old Maisie trades school basketball for the wrestling team and finds herself enduring the mockery and disdain of boys, girls and adults alike.
Some nice humour and insights.
April 16, 2024
More of a 2.5/5, but I’d say closer to a 2 than a 3 for me.
I did love the overall message and the practice and meet dynamics kept me hooked. However, a lot of the family scenes didn’t hit me as much.
I also wished the wrestling matches and terminology were more detailed, though I understand that wasn’t the main focus for the book.
I did love the overall message and the practice and meet dynamics kept me hooked. However, a lot of the family scenes didn’t hit me as much.
I also wished the wrestling matches and terminology were more detailed, though I understand that wasn’t the main focus for the book.
June 26, 2017
Kinda amazing how a male writer nailed the feelings and reactions of a girl who doesn't want to grow up, and doesn't want to start liking guys, but finds herself with a ridiculous crush on one of them.
As always with Spinelli, the characters are wonderfully well-developed and believable.
As always with Spinelli, the characters are wonderfully well-developed and believable.
November 17, 2017
I'll admit I sped through this one and did not read word-for-word. But I enjoyed Maisie's perspective and trials. Gotta love (and ache for) Tank.
Hope to add a few of my favorite quotes later.
Hope to add a few of my favorite quotes later.
December 7, 2021
I cried so much during the book. I felt like I was listening to a preteen girl telling her story. I wanted to at least see Holly and Masie have a conversation. And I did like that they did not stay friends because that is how middle school and life in general happens.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 25, 2018
LOVED THIS BOOK
October 14, 2022
I remember reading this in middle school and it made an impression.
May 30, 2023
Nice ending. You may start a project for one reason but finish it for another. And in the process you might learn who your true friends are.
October 15, 2023
Do not enjoy this author at all.
November 21, 2019
I really enjoyed this one. To this day, wrestling is a male dominated sport in American high schools. When a girl steps into that, what happens? This does a great job of showing some of those struggles and triumphs.
Read
March 14, 2017I didn't love this book because I just didn't like the story line. At the beginning it was ok, but then it just kind of lost me.
March 14, 2017
I have read this at least once before, and I remembered the ending being ambiguous, but it's not at all! It's very hopeful! I enjoyed reading it again.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 9, 2010
"But feelings, they don't care about telling. They just go right on, piling on top of one another like a big sandwich."
—There's a Girl in My Hammerlock, P. 12
Jerry Spinelli is so good a writer, it's unfair. His writing touch is as light as meringue and twice as sweet; it glitters through the words on every page of his books like diamond dust. Each time, I find myself breathlessly caught up at the climaxes of his stories, caring deeply for the people that he has created, because they have become so vividly alive to me.
Jerry Spinelli can make you think along lines that you never thought would resonate within you. He can take plot lines that have no apparent connection to your life, and through the universality of human emotion make what happens in the narrative hit home as if you were reading your own life story. That is simply remarkable, and it's what Jerry Spinelli does best. How many boys would expect to identify with a girl who wants to try out for the wrestling team? How many girls would think that a book about wrestling would appeal to their personal literary tastes? Yet There's a Girl in My Hammerlock is so sweetly and candidly written, I can hardly imagine anyone walking away from reading it without feeling that the book has positively impacted their life.
As with most books by Jerry Spinelli, There's a Girl in My Hammerlock thrives more on the emotions of the characters than on the events that take place. These are very textured, realistic characters, and their emotions significantly affect the way that they view their world and live their lives; in turn, this has a major impact on what will end up happening to each of the characters as the plot advances. Even the secondary characters (like Tank, for one shining example) are immaculately drawn, showing the capacity for amazing things even as our attention is primarily directed elsewhere. It's a beautiful, beautiful thing, and I didn't stop enjoying it for one single paragraph.
Though Jerry Spinelli gives us plenty of wrestling action, I would stress the fact that this really is not a wrestling book. Like every one of Jerry Spinelli's offerings, it's an observational book about life, letting us see within a few days of an adolescent girl who is confused about her life and the changes that have come and the changes that are still on their way, as she continually fights her way forward through all of it to try to give herself the best life possible. It may not be migrant farm workers under an oppressive regime, but it is utterly compelling to anyone who themselves has faced the battle of living in modern times.
Remember this, though: Masie's choice to try out for the wrestling team does not lead her down an easy road, and Jerry Spinelli refuses to cheat the integrity of her story by making the path any smoother, or even by giving her a clear vision of why she desires to try out for the team. Even Masie really doesn't know the answer to that one, and the mish-mash of confusion only grows as times get tough and Masie begins to see her real friends draw around her in a vibrant, if almost imperceptible, circle of caring support.
I love There's a Girl in My Hammerlock, and I would with much fondness recommend it to anyone.
—There's a Girl in My Hammerlock, P. 12
Jerry Spinelli is so good a writer, it's unfair. His writing touch is as light as meringue and twice as sweet; it glitters through the words on every page of his books like diamond dust. Each time, I find myself breathlessly caught up at the climaxes of his stories, caring deeply for the people that he has created, because they have become so vividly alive to me.
Jerry Spinelli can make you think along lines that you never thought would resonate within you. He can take plot lines that have no apparent connection to your life, and through the universality of human emotion make what happens in the narrative hit home as if you were reading your own life story. That is simply remarkable, and it's what Jerry Spinelli does best. How many boys would expect to identify with a girl who wants to try out for the wrestling team? How many girls would think that a book about wrestling would appeal to their personal literary tastes? Yet There's a Girl in My Hammerlock is so sweetly and candidly written, I can hardly imagine anyone walking away from reading it without feeling that the book has positively impacted their life.
As with most books by Jerry Spinelli, There's a Girl in My Hammerlock thrives more on the emotions of the characters than on the events that take place. These are very textured, realistic characters, and their emotions significantly affect the way that they view their world and live their lives; in turn, this has a major impact on what will end up happening to each of the characters as the plot advances. Even the secondary characters (like Tank, for one shining example) are immaculately drawn, showing the capacity for amazing things even as our attention is primarily directed elsewhere. It's a beautiful, beautiful thing, and I didn't stop enjoying it for one single paragraph.
Though Jerry Spinelli gives us plenty of wrestling action, I would stress the fact that this really is not a wrestling book. Like every one of Jerry Spinelli's offerings, it's an observational book about life, letting us see within a few days of an adolescent girl who is confused about her life and the changes that have come and the changes that are still on their way, as she continually fights her way forward through all of it to try to give herself the best life possible. It may not be migrant farm workers under an oppressive regime, but it is utterly compelling to anyone who themselves has faced the battle of living in modern times.
Remember this, though: Masie's choice to try out for the wrestling team does not lead her down an easy road, and Jerry Spinelli refuses to cheat the integrity of her story by making the path any smoother, or even by giving her a clear vision of why she desires to try out for the team. Even Masie really doesn't know the answer to that one, and the mish-mash of confusion only grows as times get tough and Masie begins to see her real friends draw around her in a vibrant, if almost imperceptible, circle of caring support.
I love There's a Girl in My Hammerlock, and I would with much fondness recommend it to anyone.
January 3, 2017
It's the story on a girl believing in herself (P.s.: & believe...........)
January 31, 2013
An open letter to middle school students hoping to cheat/look smart:
Look no farther.
All that to say: I liked the book.
Look no farther.
All that to say: I liked the book.
February 17, 2017
High school read, don't remember it now, really, except that I liked it.
Read
July 10, 2019Incredibly heartwarming.
October 30, 2010
A humorous story about a girl named Maisie who goes out for the high school wrestling team and how she deals with all the ramifications of her choice of sports. Spinelli's treatment of difficult gender, physical growth, and physical attraction issues exacerbated by extraordinary circumstances works because humor is his powerful tool. He helps youth explore awkward situations without making judgments for us by focusing on the funny aspects of situations. I laughed out loud many, many times!
Some parents may question co-ed contact sports and wonder if teens will take this book as a nod in favor. If both teens and parents read the book, the reading can spark discussions of family and personal values. There is controversy because the book asks us to question what it means to be male and female, which is closely tied to deep rooted beliefs and traditions. Talking about it may help a young person decide what he/she believes and why. I enjoyed the humor and the exercise of my moral compass immensely.
Ages 14-17 (some younger teens have not escaped "cooties" yet)
No violence. Some crude humor. Some kissing. Mention of body parts. One attempted make-out session that comes to a quick end.
Some parents may question co-ed contact sports and wonder if teens will take this book as a nod in favor. If both teens and parents read the book, the reading can spark discussions of family and personal values. There is controversy because the book asks us to question what it means to be male and female, which is closely tied to deep rooted beliefs and traditions. Talking about it may help a young person decide what he/she believes and why. I enjoyed the humor and the exercise of my moral compass immensely.
Ages 14-17 (some younger teens have not escaped "cooties" yet)
No violence. Some crude humor. Some kissing. Mention of body parts. One attempted make-out session that comes to a quick end.
December 14, 2010
I read this for a tongue-in-cheek book club, so please don't think this book is a reflection of my actual taste in literature.
That being said, it's not a HORRIBLE young-adult novel, but I feel like it was an opportunity wasted. There were so many themes that didn't get explored: gender issues, budding sexuality, peer pressure, the importance of individuality, etc. etc. etc. Instead, Jerry Spinelli spent the majority of his words describing wrestling moves and giving detailed accounts of what goes on in a (male-envisioned) girls' locker room. Add in a bunch of one-dimensional characters that add nothing to the plot and you've got one giant waste of time. Jerry, this book could've been a teaching tool. Instead, it was just silly.
Also, the ending was lazy and glib. No lessons were learned, no attitudes were challenged, no one grew at all. The only reason the town came to embrace the female protagonist is because she was - SPOILER ALERT - hit by a snowplow while rescuing a child (??!?!), so everyone begrudgingly accepted her as a hero and instantly buried all their deeply-held prejudicies. I mean, what?! Deus ex machina much, Jerry!?
That being said, it's not a HORRIBLE young-adult novel, but I feel like it was an opportunity wasted. There were so many themes that didn't get explored: gender issues, budding sexuality, peer pressure, the importance of individuality, etc. etc. etc. Instead, Jerry Spinelli spent the majority of his words describing wrestling moves and giving detailed accounts of what goes on in a (male-envisioned) girls' locker room. Add in a bunch of one-dimensional characters that add nothing to the plot and you've got one giant waste of time. Jerry, this book could've been a teaching tool. Instead, it was just silly.
Also, the ending was lazy and glib. No lessons were learned, no attitudes were challenged, no one grew at all. The only reason the town came to embrace the female protagonist is because she was - SPOILER ALERT - hit by a snowplow while rescuing a child (??!?!), so everyone begrudgingly accepted her as a hero and instantly buried all their deeply-held prejudicies. I mean, what?! Deus ex machina much, Jerry!?
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