Reviews

Gr 7-12-- Thousands of YAs have read and loved Zindel's The Pigman (HarperCollins, 1968). In this tragicomic memoir, he describes one of his own teen years spent with his mother and sister on Staten Island. He is in rare form here. While he's not the first to turn teenage angst into humor, he is certainly among the best. His neurotic, wheeler-dealer mother talks her way into purchasing a house with Connie, another single mother, who has a set of out-of-control, identical twins. Travis is a very insular town, consisting largely of Polish families, and Zindel's one friend, Jenni fer Wolupopski, warns him of the less-than- cordial reception he's bound to receive in Sep tember. His fears are somewhat soothed when he meets Connie's father, who is destined to become his pigman. He is the first male adult who listens to the boy, laughs with him, and really loves him. Always telling silly jokes and working in Connie's garden, he is never too busy to talk to and advise Zindel on the im portant things in life, such as how to get fried killies and how to win his first fistfight. The old man changes his life, making it more bearable when his spirit could have been crushed by his family situation. The Pigman & Me allows readers a glimpse of Zindel's youth, gives them insight into some of his fic tional characters, and provides many exam ples of universal experiences that will make them laugh and cry. --Susan R. Farber, Ossi ning Public Library, NY

Zindel's ( The Pigman ; My Darling, My Hamburger ) fans will find that his autobiography has much more than a little in common with his fiction: black humor abounds, and the whipcrack narration is replete with genuine teenage sarcasm. Rather than chronicle his entire life, the author has chosen to relates the events of one a single significant year in his early adolescence. After years of moving the family from one shabby apartment to the next, Zindel's unhappy and eccentric mother seemed ready to settle into the house she and Connie--another single mother--had bought. Just how much this promise of stability meant to Zindel is revealed by the intensity of the longing that lies just below his wisecracking tone. The very best part of the arrangement was the presence of Connie's father--Nonno Frankie. In his frequent visits to the Staten Island household, Nonno Frankie cooked sumptuous Italian feasts and dished out plenty of advice and support to the young Zindel. Readers familiar with the author's novels will not be surprised to learn that in Zindel's real life--as well as in his fiction--this happy situation is too good to last long. With its brisk pace and lively goings-on, this account will appeal to the die-hard Zindel fan and the casual reader alike. Ages 12-up. (Oct.)