Freak the Mighty

by Rodman Philbrick

1993
Age ranges: Grades 3-7
Genre(s): multicultural, realistic fiction
Golden Sower Award

Story summary: Max, a learning disabled boy, and his friend, a highly intelligent physically disabled boy whom he calls Freak, are outcasts at their school.  The form an unlikely friendship and go on many adventures together. Max is overcoming the fact that his father is in prison for killing his mother and Freak is battling a serious illness.  Together, they brains and brawn.  Max starts to do better in school and Freak looks forward to his operation that is going to make him the first human/robot hybrid.  Freak, however, dies and Max is left alone.  Max is severely depressed until he looks again at the blank book Freak gave him just before he died, requesting Max would write down all of their adventures in the book.  Thus the book, Freak the Mighty.

My reaction:  This story was full of adventure, emotion and beauty of growing up. Students would love this book because it is so like the struggles they face day to day.