Knots in my yo-yo string : the autobiography of a kid

by Jerry Spinelli

Paper Book, 1998

Status

Available

Call number

813/.54B

Collection

NF Office

Publication

New York : Knopf, c1998.

Description

This Italian-American Newbery Medalist presents a humorous account of his childhood and youth in Norristown, Pennsylvania.

User reviews

LibraryThing member whitewavedarling

Compared to Spinelli's fiction, this is fairly tame (and somewhat uneven), but it does have its moments. Looking back to his entire childhood, and briefly to the present, Spinelli's self-proclaimed "Autobiography of a Kid" is at its best in the first seventy-five pages and then at the end. There,

you see the child who grew into the adult, and the adult, and all of the humor and quirks that made him into the writer he became. In the in between section, at times, it feels almost more like a report or a straight piece of nonfiction (though, for folks interested in sports, this not be so much the case). Thus, as an autobiography, it comes across as somewhat uneven since nearly all of the humor we know Spinelli for comes in the very end, or the first 75 pages or so (of a 150 page book). Of course, it's also built for young readers, which may too far simplify an autobiography for an adult's taste. However, in the end, I'm still glad to have read it, and I'd certainly recommend it to other readers who already love Spinelli's work. They're sure to recommend little bits and pieces of his life as they ended up slipping into his fiction, which was nearly my favorite part of the whole reading experience...the second being how he answered a child's question, in the end of the book, that being "Do think being a kid helped you to become a writer?" At the very least, this question in mind, writerly readers might enjoy reading the very last chapter of the book whether they know Spinelli's work or not. Come to think of it, I may just reread that chapter now.

Simply? Recommended for all those interested.

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LibraryThing member zodox5

A awesome book about the author's life in this terrific book!

LibraryThing member volleyball10

This is a good book if you like biographys. Even if you don't, this is a good book to read if you have neaver read an autobiography.

LibraryThing member madelinelbaker

This novel is a good example of an Autobiography because it is written by Jerry Spinelli himself, a well known children's author, about his childhood, and what events lead him up to being a writer.

LibraryThing member tigger14

this is a great book about a Jerry Spinelli and his life.

LibraryThing member nateray

Thiis reminds me of friends, and it makes me want to hear stories from my relatives.

LibraryThing member Fretta

I think this book is a easy book to read with children in the classroom. Its a great way to get them involved in class.

LibraryThing member ErinH611

I enjoyed this book. I liked how the author basically wrote a biography of himself and published it for the whole word to read. He learns lessons in this book and walks us through his life. He teaches us his goals and accomplishments in life, young or old. He was meant to be a writer and that is

exactly what he is!

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LibraryThing member Carol420

Memories are precious things. I can’t image how bleak the world would be if we suddenly lost the ability to return to happy, simpler times that we all have. This little book allows most of us…at least those of us over thirty… to take a trip back in 148 pages of pure bliss. The author is just

a few years older than I am… but we share a lot of those same memories. For me it was a time when summer never seemed to end…Saturdays were taken up with Roy Rogers and Hopalong Cassidy reruns, Leave It to Beaver and Sky King…all in black & white pre-techno glory…everyone I knew lived in a house with only one bathroom and one telephone, which was plugged into the wall somewhere…one TV that maybe got 3 channels clearly if you were lucky…and only one car…not per person but for the entire family. However did we survive? I revisited those memories with every chapter. Chapters, by the way that are short….some really short. It’s just a book about growing up and the fun and disappointments, and mistakes, of being a kid. Teachers will find it perfect for their classes from 3rd grade up…and teachers beware: if you can relate to any of it…you can count yourself a part of history not to mention that your class will know just how old you really are :)

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