About the book

Jeffrey Lionel Magee becomes a legend in the town of Two Mills. He winds up in Two Mills after becoming an orphan when his parents are killed in a trolley accident. He runs away from his aunt and uncle’s house to search for a true home, a place where he can belong. Two Mills is a racially divided town. Maniac doesn’t understand or buy into the prejudiced attitudes of the people in the East and West Ends, and he creates a stir, not only because of this, but also because of his many courageous and extraordinary feats. He earns the nickname of Maniac Magee, but he would much rather be known by Jeffery. He runs and runs until he finds a place he can call home. In the process of his running and interacting with the people in Two Mills, he serves as a model for understanding, tolerance, love, and friendship.

Awards

1991 Newbery Medal

1990 Boston Globe—Horn Book Award

1991 Notable Children’s Books (ALA)

1991 Best Books for Young Adults (ALA)

1990 Children’s Editors’ Choices (Booklist)

About the author

Jerry Spinelli was born on February 1, 1941 in Norristown, Pennsylvania. He began writing when he was sixteen years old after his high school football team won a big game. He wrote a poem about the victory that was published in the local newspaper. He enjoys writing about adventures of typical young children, and he gets his ideas from everyday life, memories, and imagination. His first published book was Space Station Seventh Grade, 1982. Other books in addition to Maniac Magee, 1990, are Who Put That Hair in my Toothbrush?, 1984; Fourth Grade Rats, 1991; There’s a Girl in my Hammerlock, 1991; Crash, 1996; Wringer, 1997; The Library Card, 1997; Knots in my Yo-Yo String, 1998. Jerry and his wife have 7 children and live in West Chester, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Gettysbury College and also received an M.A. from Johns Hopkins University.

Before Reading Activities

Have students brainstorm about some of the themes in the story and write down whatever comes to their mind about these topics: home, courage, friendship, prejudice, racism, poverty, running away, facing challenges. Then have volunteers share their thoughts.

Have students complete a Predict-o-gram for words in the story. (See attached handout.) They should categorize the following words based on how they think the words will fit in the story according to characters, setting, and plot (problem and events to solve the problem): Mars Bar, West End, bully, fear, baseball, racial prejudice, Amanda Beale, Two Mills, learning to read, Cobbles Knot, Grayson, frogball, friend, Cobras, running away, trolley, East End, homeless, trestle, buffalo pen, Maniac Magee.

After Reading Activities

1. Questions to discuss in small groups:

Maniac is always running. In the beginning of the story, he runs away from his aunt and uncle. There are 3 other times he runs away in the story. Discuss all of these times and also what you think makes Maniac run.
What does having an address mean to Jeffrey? How do you know it is important to him?
How is Maniac Magee a good friend? Discuss who he is a good friend toward and what he does that makes him a good friend.
Describe the relationship between Maniac and Mars Bar. How does it change during the story?
By the end of the story, how has Maniac affected the town of Two Mills? What has he done to “unite” the people? Give examples from the story.

2. Create a Bio-poem or a Character trait web for Maniac Magee.

Bio-Poem format

Name

Four traits

Related to

Cares deeply about

Who feels

Who needs

Who gives

Who would like to see

Resident of

Character trait web

Students can use Inspiration software to create webs and add pictures and graphics to illustrate. (See attached web.)

Predict-o-gram

Characters

Setting

Plot (problem & events to solve the problem)