''The Pinballs'' is a 1976 young adult

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

author

Betsy Byars Betsy Byars (née Cromer; August 7, 1928 – February 26, 2020) was an American author of children's books. Her novel '' Summer of the Swans'' won the 1971 Newbery Medal.Author's website She has also received a National Book Award for Young Peo ...

. It is about three foster children, Carlie, Harvey and Thomas J., who have been taken in by the Masons, a couple who have cared for many other foster children and also have some personal problems. Carlie compares the children to

pinball Pinball games are a family of games in which a ball is propelled into a specially designed table where it bounces off various obstacles, scoring points either en route or when it comes to rest. Historically the board was studded with nails call ...

s, controlled by external forces and at the mercy of fate. It won the 1977

Josette Frank Award The Josette Frank Award is an American children's literary award for fiction given annually by the Children's Book Committee at Bank Street College of Education. It "honors a book or books of outstanding literary merit in which children or young peo ...

, the 1980

William Allen White Children's Book Award The William Allen White Children's Book Award is a set of two annual awards for books selected by vote of Kansas schoolchildren from lists prepared by committee. As a single award it was established in 1952 by Ruth Garver Gagliardo, a children's ...

, and the 1980

California Young Reader Medal The California Young Reader Medal is a set of five annual literary awards conferred upon picture books and fiction books selected by vote of California schoolchildren from a ballot prepared by committee. The program was established in 1974 with Int ...

. ''The Pinballs'' received the Golden Archer Award, a student-choice book award sponsored by the Wisconsin Educational Media and Technology Association.

Plot

Carlie lives in a foster home with the Masons, an infertile couple. The Masons have been foster parents for 17 kids. Carlie is the most outwardly hostile toward her situation, and quite skeptical about having trust in others. She plans to stay there until her family works out their problems. She must stay because her last stepfather gave her a concussion. Two other children arrive, Harvey, who has two broken legs, and Thomas J., who grew up living with two elderly twin sisters who found him abandoned in front of their farmhouse when he was two. Thomas J. means well but has never learned how to express himself. He gets help from Mr. Mason who had similar problems in his childhood. Harvey is very unhappy and needs others badly, although he has trouble admitting it. Eventually, he confesses that his father accidentally ran over his legs with his car while

drunk Alcohol intoxication, also known as alcohol poisoning, commonly described as drunkenness or inebriation, is the negative behavior and physical effects caused by a recent consumption of alcohol. In addition to the toxicity of ethanol, the main ps ...

, even though he originally told everyone he was a quarterback and his legs were broken playing football. Before the injury, his parents fought and his mother left to join a commune. His father denies that she ever wrote back to Harvey since she left. At first, Carlie feels neglected. She considers running away but eventually decides to take charge of her life and stop being a passive "pinball" bounced from home to home. When Harvey is in the hospital after his legs became infected, Carlie, and Thomas J. give him a puppy for his birthday, which he always wanted and it helps him get him through the pain. In the end, Carlie determines that the three of them are not pinballs, because, unlike pinballs, they can control where they are going and can be helpful to each other.

TV movie

In 1977, the book was made into an episode of the

ABC Afterschool Special ''ABC Afterschool Special'' is an American television anthology series that aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from October 4, 1972, to January 23, 1997, usually in the late afternoon on weekdays. Most episodes were dramatically presen ...

series, starring

Kristy McNichol Christina Ann McNichol (born September 11, 1962) is an American former actress. She is known for such film roles as Angel in ''Little Darlings'', Polly in '' Only When I Laugh'', and Barbara Weston in the TV sitcom ''Empty Nest''. She won two Emmy ...

as Carlie,

Johnny Doran Johnny Doran (1908 – 19 January 1950)Sleeve notes compiled by Jackie Small and published with ''The Bunch of Keys'' audio tape, Comhairle Bhéaloideas Éireann (CBÉ 001), 1988 was an Irish uilleann piper. Life and family Johnny Doran was bo ...

as Harvey and

Sparky Marcus Sparky Marcus (born Marcus Issoglio; December 6, 1967) is an American former actor. Early life Marcus was born in Hollywood, California. Career Marcus was well known for playing the role of the precocious child but also worked extensively as a ...

as Thomas J.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pinballs, The 1976 American novels American young adult novels American novels adapted into films ABC Afterschool Special episodes HarperCollins books