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brooke_review's review against another edition
2.0
The title “Dead End in Norvelt” reveals to you much of the basis of this Newbery Award-Winning novel - what lies between its covers is a tale about a boy, grounded and stuck in a “dead end” summer, working for an elderly neighbor who is a historian, medical examiner, and writer of obituaries for the “dead” of the town of “Norvelt,” aptly named for its founder, Eleanor Roosevelt. But this semi-autobiographical story is much more than that – thrown in for good measure are quirky townspeople, an ever-spouting bloody nose, a backyard bomb shelter and airplane runway, Hell’s Angels, an unusual amount of town deaths, a dose of history, and a little bit of mystery. All surmount to a peculiar summer for Jack Gantos, in Norvelt, Pennsylvania in 1962.
This novel is uniquely filled with all the quirky details that make for an entertaining, yet informative read. The characters are painted so vividly through dialogue and description that they leap off of the pages. The town of Norvelt feels so odd, yet so real – maybe because the town really exists. The touches of history sprinkled throughout the novel work to remind us of where we have been, where we are, and where we are going. All in all, this well-rounded novel contains a little bit of something for everyone, and won’t soon be forgotten.
The work is recommended as an independent read, but would also make for an outstanding read-aloud due to its uniquely memorable characters and plot. This Newbery Award-Winner is an essential purchase for all libraries.
This novel is uniquely filled with all the quirky details that make for an entertaining, yet informative read. The characters are painted so vividly through dialogue and description that they leap off of the pages. The town of Norvelt feels so odd, yet so real – maybe because the town really exists. The touches of history sprinkled throughout the novel work to remind us of where we have been, where we are, and where we are going. All in all, this well-rounded novel contains a little bit of something for everyone, and won’t soon be forgotten.
The work is recommended as an independent read, but would also make for an outstanding read-aloud due to its uniquely memorable characters and plot. This Newbery Award-Winner is an essential purchase for all libraries.
opticflow's review against another edition
4.0
We seem to have gotten away from children’s books where good characters do or say bad things, have ignorant viewpoints, or bump up against unsavory parts of life that are not essential for furthering the plot. But this book cleverly and hilariously delivers all that we love about stories like Harriet the Spy and From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler: language and scenarios true to the time without overly worrying about political correctness or moral-building. A WWII relic is repeatedly called a ‘Jap rifle,’ our hero’s favorite swear is ‘cheesus crust,’ and the town jokes about a teenager being the new boyfriend of an elderly lady. Don’t forget underage driving, public drunkenness, revenge by an angry mob of Hell’s angels, and home surgery. This book may be totally irrelevant to kids today but it’s no wonder it won the Newbery because it’s a testament to that good ole kids lit from the 1960s and 1970s.
margeryb's review against another edition
4.0
Dead End in Norvelt is a hard book to summarize for a review. This novel is a semi-autographical work that is as much a story of a town as it is a story of a family as it is a story of Jack Gantos' coming-of-age summer. There are so many threads that all come together is weave a vividly realized story with realistic quirkiness and a wonderful heart.
I listened to the audio, narrated by the author, who has the perfect voice for the tone of the story. Something about the humor, the memoir-ish quality of an adult rendering a child's memories, the family themes made 'A Christmas Story' (which is based off a memoir) pops to mind as a similar work.
So many times when I am reading and/or listening to a story, I am already thinking of negative things to put in a review (not the best way to read, but I notice when stories fall short for me regardless) and I didn't have that experience with Dead End in Norvelt at all. It is a story that does not show its seams. It is a story that is an experience that you are absorbed into, which is what you want a story to be. It is a wonderful piece of historical fiction that I think child and adult readers would find equally as engaging.
I listened to the audio, narrated by the author, who has the perfect voice for the tone of the story. Something about the humor, the memoir-ish quality of an adult rendering a child's memories, the family themes made 'A Christmas Story' (which is based off a memoir) pops to mind as a similar work.
So many times when I am reading and/or listening to a story, I am already thinking of negative things to put in a review (not the best way to read, but I notice when stories fall short for me regardless) and I didn't have that experience with Dead End in Norvelt at all. It is a story that does not show its seams. It is a story that is an experience that you are absorbed into, which is what you want a story to be. It is a wonderful piece of historical fiction that I think child and adult readers would find equally as engaging.
farmgirl103's review against another edition
4.0
I always enjoy historical fiction, and Jack Gantos didn't disappoint me with this story. Once I finished the book, I did a bit of research about Norvelt, PA. What an interesting social experiment it was to offer homesteading as a solution to families during the Great Depression!
shawnareads24's review against another edition
4.0
Young Jack is spending his summer either writing obituaries for the original Norvelt residents, digging a bomb shelter, or grounded at home. His only way out of being grounded is to be the hands for his arthritic neighbor. The book starts out with a hysterical description of his first encounter with helping Miss Volkers and his thought that she was melting her hands off. I was literally laughing out loud at this. The book does have some slow parts and I wonder if very many of my students will choose to read the whole book. I think that the adults in our school might enjoy it more.
lbb00ks's review against another edition
Lots of laugh out loud parts, great pacing, helter-skelter romp.
goodbetterbetsy's review against another edition
5.0
Looooooved this! I was sad when Okay for Now by Gary Schmidt didn't win the Newbery, but I knew Dead End in Norvelt was supposed to be kind of similar. It was and amazingly enough I liked it even more!
Jack Gantos is grounded for the summer and the only times he gets to escape the house is when he is out in the back yard digging a bomb shelter or down the street helping Miss. Volker write obituaries for the paper. It turns out there are quite a lot of original Norvelters dying this particular summer so Jack spends a lot of time with Miss. Volker. It also turns out that these deaths may not be natural - even though the women are all getting on in years.
The book was hilarious. I tried to only read it during my lunch break so it would last longer. I highly recommend everyone read it.
Jack Gantos is grounded for the summer and the only times he gets to escape the house is when he is out in the back yard digging a bomb shelter or down the street helping Miss. Volker write obituaries for the paper. It turns out there are quite a lot of original Norvelters dying this particular summer so Jack spends a lot of time with Miss. Volker. It also turns out that these deaths may not be natural - even though the women are all getting on in years.
The book was hilarious. I tried to only read it during my lunch break so it would last longer. I highly recommend everyone read it.
plaidpladd's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
1.0
This book was a surprising struggle to get through. At best, I found it boring. I kept having to remind myself it was published in 2011 because it really reads like one of the earlier, more inexplicable Newbery picks.
eleiser's review against another edition
I picked this book up at the library because my girls and I needed a new audio book for the car. I didn't know anything about it or the author at the time. As it turns out, this is a great book. Even my 6 year old loved it. She would constantly update my mom on what was happening in the book. It's funny, but at the same time it draws you into the lives of the characters. "Gantos Boy", you wrote a good one!