What Would Joey Do? (Joey Pigza Books)
Modern literature's unlikely hero Joey Pigza is back in Jack Gantos's  grand finale to the award-winning trilogy that began withJoey Pigza Swallowed the Keyand the Newbery Honor bookJoey  Pigza Loses Control. Joey, the sweetest, funniest kid on meds you'll  ever meet, has enough trouble trying to keep his "active" self together. How can  he win in his new, self-assumed role as "Mr. Helpful" when his divorced parents  are out of control, his Grandma is surly and morbid, and Olivia, the mean blind  girl he's forced to homeschool with, calls him a "hyper retard"? Even Olivia's  religious mother can't save him with her "What would Jesus do?" refrain. As his  world of flawed adults spins around him in carnivalesque chaos, Joey has to  decide on a daily basis what he, Joey, should do. At least he has Pablo, his  loyal Chihuahua mutt, his lucky charm. Or at least he does until his maniacal  father (complete with restraining order) kidnaps the dog to lure Joey out of the  house.Joey is a wonderful character, and his first-person narrative is both hilarious  and heartbreaking. Sadly, it is his dying grandmother who knows him best: "You  know, Joey, if you didn't wear those med patches, you'd just be thinking about  yourself, and you wouldn't care about making everyone happy. Your problem is  that you got better, and the rest of the world didn't." While it is more  rewarding to have read the previous Joey books before this one, it is not  mandatory. Still, all three Joey books are memorable, honest, fresh, exciting,  truly eye-opening, and should not be missed by child or adult. (Ages 10 and  older)--Karin Snelson--This text refers to theHardcoveredition.