Planet 5th Book Review

Maniac Magee, by Jerry Spinelli, was a pretty good book. It taught a lesson talked about in a lot of other books: treat others the way you wish to be treated.

This book takes place when blacks were not treated the way they wished. "Maniac" Magee, as he was called, was running away from his aunt and uncle's house, where he had been living after his parents died, when he found himself in Two Mills, Pennsylvania. As he is wandering his way through town, he meets a girl named Amanda. Now, Amanda liked Jeffery, "Maniac's" real name, but she noticed something different about Jeffery. He was white, and she was black. This struck Amanda as odd because he had no business doing anything on the black side of town, "The East End." After a lot of begging, he got her to let him borrow a book, which he promised to get back to her. As Jeffery is making his way through town to follow his promise, he makes a name for himself, "Maniac."

After he returns the book, he finds Amanda's family to be a very nice one, and lives with the Beales for a short while. On "The East End" of Two Mills, the Beale's are picked on more than usual for having Jeffery live with them, because he is white. Jeffery feels this is not fair to the Beale's, so he leaves. Throughout the rest of the book, Jeffery finds different places to live. He gets kicked out of some, and runs away from others.

I really liked this book. It had short chapters, so you don't have to stop in the middle of one. It is a very interesting book, and I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading. I think you would like it as well.

In this book, the theme is definitely to follow the golden rule. And this book shows it better than a lot of other books I've read. I really hope you read this book to find out how it ends. I enjoyed reading it and I know you will too!