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angiegladden's review
1.0
I don't know the last time I gave up on a book so quickly. I've been trying to read it for 2 weeks...I've started and finished 3 other books in that time...30 pages in and I just can't make myself read one more paragraph. After reading other reviews, maybe I'm just not artistic enough to "get" an allegorical story like this. It makes me sad because "Stargirl" was such a great book and I was looking forward to reading Spinelli again.
crizzle's review
4.0
For me, this came close to the power of Maniac Magee and Stargirl, also by Spinelli. I found myself meandering down the juvenile fiction shelves, ending up at Jerry Spinelli... I had seen something about his latest book on the 2013 Goodreads book awards, so I recognized "Hokey Pokey", and instantly loved the cover and feel of the fat book and the cut of the choppy-edged pages.
Hokey Pokey is a kid-world, brimming with all things kid, filled with playing and battling (boys against girls, young against 'old')... and growing out of that world. It kind of reminded me of Neverland - Peter Pan and the Lost Boys. It will definitely go in my recommendations for kids from about 4th grade up, along with Spinelli's other greats!
Hokey Pokey is a kid-world, brimming with all things kid, filled with playing and battling (boys against girls, young against 'old')... and growing out of that world. It kind of reminded me of Neverland - Peter Pan and the Lost Boys. It will definitely go in my recommendations for kids from about 4th grade up, along with Spinelli's other greats!
hannah_dillard's review
5.0
Excellent! More whimsical than any book I've read by Jerry Spinelli, but it was just strange enough to keep me reading. Loved the lessons learned and the story plot!
kunaldaga's review
4.0
Hokey Pokey was a very interesting book and I liked it a lot. I recall saying I was iffy about the writing styles of the book, but as the book went on, I felt more comfortable with it. It was a comfort book and I recommend it to anyone looking for a easy and quick read.
mon_ique's review
3.0
Scanned through some stuff. The Story was weird. The ending made me cry; the last of childhood and active imagination was such a sad yet hopeful and happy ending. I wish I remember when I stopped playing with paper dolls, pretending they were real with lives and families that were suddenly created at 14 or something. Childhood is such a beautiful thing.
But what I don't get is why at the end (sorta), it's like Jack has forgotten his childhood-_-
But what I don't get is why at the end (sorta), it's like Jack has forgotten his childhood-_-
quietjenn's review
3.0
Honestly, I just don't even know to say about this one. While reading it, I was really not on board. I may have even said "Argh, I hate this" aloud, to my largely unsympathetic cat. I am not the Ideal Reader for things that are allegorical, nor do I have a high tolerance for the fetisiazation of childhood, both of which are super present here. The only other Spinelli I've read is Stargirl and I wasn't a fan, in part because I think that it, like this is so strident in presenting its world. And, I to think it's a pretty simple worldview, for all it's inventiveness w/r/t language and imagery.
And yet. I haven't been able to stop thinking about this. Or, really more accurately, I haven't been able to stop thinking about the issues that reading this brought up. (Plus, some criticisms, but I'm not inclined to lay them out.) And I kind of want to talk about it with someone, because there's so much here. I would love to use this in a kid's book discussion group, because I just think that kids and teens would have so much (really interesting things) to say about it. And it's certainly unlike anything else out there, which I do appreciate.
So, while I can't declare myself an enthusiastic member of Team Hokey Pokey, I didn't really hate it either. So, team Middle Ground.
And yet. I haven't been able to stop thinking about this. Or, really more accurately, I haven't been able to stop thinking about the issues that reading this brought up. (Plus, some criticisms, but I'm not inclined to lay them out.) And I kind of want to talk about it with someone, because there's so much here. I would love to use this in a kid's book discussion group, because I just think that kids and teens would have so much (really interesting things) to say about it. And it's certainly unlike anything else out there, which I do appreciate.
So, while I can't declare myself an enthusiastic member of Team Hokey Pokey, I didn't really hate it either. So, team Middle Ground.
librarybrods's review
3.0
This book totally grew on me. I did not have high hopes at the beginning, it was all a bit too much for me. The narration was fantastic, though, and I was able to up my ranking through the last third.
lemon_drop's review against another edition
5.0
If Sartre or Camus wrote a kid's book... it might look like this.
lauralynnwalsh's review
5.0
Extended allegory/metaphor really isn't my style of book, but Spinelli is masterful with this one. I had a bike like that once. I am not really sure there is anything more to say.