''Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key'' is a children's novel by

Jack Gantos Jack Gantos (born July 2, 1951) is an American author of children's books. He is best known for the fictional characters Rotten Ralph and Joey Pigza. Rotten Ralph is a cat who stars in twenty picture books written by Gantos and illustrated by ...

, published in 1998. It is the first of a series of books featuring the character Joey Pigza. The book was a National Book Award finalist.

Plot

The book describes the life of a child named Joey Pigza who frequently gets into trouble at school due to his erratic behavior. He has a habit of swallowing a key attached to a piece of string in order to pull it back out again, and on one instance he forgets to attach a string to the key, preventing him from pulling it back up. At school, Joey puts his finger in a pencil sharpener, runs around with scissors, and cuts the tip of a girl's nose off. Pigza is on medication which he takes regularly, but it doesn't seem to be very effective. As a consequence of slicing off the tip of his classmate's nose, Pigza is suspended from school and sent to a special education center. Joey Pigza fears that "something swrong inside" him, a fear which escalates until the medications he is on are readjusted, and he feels he is able to make better decisions. The book implies that Joey Pigza is dealing with a condition such as

ADHD Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by excessive amounts of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that are pervasive, impairing in multiple contexts, and otherwise age-inapp ...

, adjustment disorder, depression, or

conduct disorder Conduct disorder (CD) is a mental disorder diagnosed in childhood or adolescence that presents itself through a repetitive and persistent pattern of behavior that includes theft, lies, physical violence that may lead to destruction, and reckles ...

, but an exact diagnosis is never specified.

Reception

In a

starred review A starred review is a book review __NOTOC__ A book review is a form of literary criticism in which a book is merely described (summary review) or analyzed based on content, style, and merit. A book review may be a primary source, opinion piece ...

for Horn Book Magazine, Jennifer Brabander praised the complex characterizations of Joey and the adults in his life and the book's frantic pace, reflecting Joey's narration. Kristi Beavin, writing for Horn Book Magazine, also applauded Gantos' ability to craft Joey's voice. While exploring disabilities in adolescent literature Abbye E. Meyer criticized that Joey never takes pride in his disability but instead is able to find self-acceptance only because of his intelligence. The book received numerous honors and awards including being National Book Award finalist, American Library Association notable children's book, and School Library Journal's book of the year.Jack Gantos
(2015). In ''Contemporary Authors Online''. Detroit, MI: Gale.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Joey Pigza Swallowed The Key 1998 American novels American children's novels Novels set in elementary and primary schools 1998 children's books