DEAD END IN NORVELT Book Review

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Gantos, Jack. Dead End in Norvelt. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2011. ISBN 978-0-374-37993-3

2. PLOT SUMMARY

During the summer of 1962, twelve-year-old Jack Gantos shoots his father’s Japanese sniper rifle, mows down his mother’s garden of corn, and becomes “grounded for life” in the historic, small town of Norvelt, Pennsylvania. He is sent to work for the town historian and nurse, Mrs. Volker, and participates in helping her write the town’s obituaries which she links to either a time in Norvelt history or world history. Jack’s summer unexpectedly turns into one of adventure and intrigue with underage driving, arson, death, dead rats, and prolific nosebleeds.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS

This Scott O’Dell Historical Fiction award winning novel immediately draws readers in with the protagonist of the same name as the author. Gantos has balanced the hilariously fictional story with historical facts. In the summer of 1962, the story unfolds in Norvelt, Pennsylvania one of the planned, cooperative communities started in the 1930s. The early development of the town and the residents’ demise is detailed by Mrs. Volker through dialogue with Jack Gantos and their collaboration in writing the original homesteaders’ obituaries.

Mrs. Volker shows Jack a needlepoint map of the town detailing each homestead section and the town buildings. As he types out the obituaries, she dictates facts about the town and the original homesteaders. She tells him, “You need to know the history of this town because if it dies out someone will have to be around to write the obit.” We learn that Mrs. Volker would like to leave Norvelt like many of the homesteaders but Eleanor Roosevelt has left her in charge of the town until the last of the original homesteaders is gone. Mrs. Volker discusses Eleanor Roosevelt’s involvement as “… Godmother Roosevelt came to the rescue. She made sure people had real houses …”. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt’s connection to the community is authentic as she visited the fourth planned community, Westmoreland Homesteads, in 1937 and the residents changed the name to Norvelt in her honor. By the 1950s, many residents left to surrounding communities leaving government farming for higher paying jobs. The time period during the Cold War is further validated with many events such as when Jack plays with his father’s Japanese army souvenirs pretending to shoot Japanese soldiers but states, “the Japanese are our friends now”, war movies are playing at the drive-in, Jack’s dad rebuilds a J-3 plane and a landing strip on their property, and Jack begins building a bomb shelter.

The story conveys faith, family, and values as Jack’s mother expresses, “You always say people should work for what they have so they will appreciate it better. People want a hand up --not a handout.” These influences are further revealed in the obituaries of the townspeople when one resident’s qualities are noted as, “… a member of the Roosevelt Food Bank for the needy, a devout Methodist, a Girl Scout den mother, a cook for the volunteer fire department.” Community responsibility is presented in Mrs. Volker’s commitments as the town nurse, historian, newspaper obituary writer, and how she races the town’s funeral director to pronounce a resident’s death. Jack’s dad talks to him about the Japanese rifle and says, “Don’t ever go to war. Even if you win, the battle is never over inside you.”

This coming-of-age story has Jack, the central character, narrating and planning a fun filled summer but his actions lead him to be “farmed-out” to the elderly neighbor. Jack is a believable character that enjoys adventure and history books, reading “This Day In History” from the newspaper and playing baseball with his friends. His interactions with his best friend Bunny, the funeral director’s daughter, and his profuse nosebleeds bring out the gore in the story. Bunny calls Jack on the phone and shouts at him, “You know what I’m doing? Dropping the phone in the human innards bucket!” Then his nose starts to bleed. Blood spews from his nose frequently when he is nervous which is gory but funny at the same time. Jack expresses how his clothes are covered in blood, “I didn’t care that there were bloodstains spattered down the front of my shirt because every shirt I owned was decorated with bloodstains.” 

With Mrs. Volker, his antics are hysterical as he becomes her hands driving her around town without a license, signing death certificates, and typing obituaries. Their comical meeting begins as he tries to assist Mrs. Volker who has just waxed her hands, “You won’t ever be fine … you won’t ever be fine because you just melted your hands off!”. As they race the funeral home director, “Hurry, I just got a call about another possible dead person--a Norvelt original!” Then she has Jack dress up in a Grim Reaper Halloween costume to check the person’s vitals, “Mrs. Dubicki’s going to have to see the Grim Reaper sooner or later, so it might as well be sooner. Now go fetch it--and hurry!” Jack describes one of the jawdropping driving episodes, "I turned wildly and our tires squealed as we nearly clipped a mailbox, and when I straightened up we went along a curvy road lined with maple trees. I put all my weight onto the brake pedal and we slid sideways to a stop. By then I was panting like a dog."

Being a history buff, Jack begins to enjoy his time with Mrs. Volker as not only an escape from being grounded but as an avenue to learn more about the town’s past. The obituaries create a seamless transition to explore history. There is even an obituary for the house burned down by the Hells Angels. “This is the obituary of a house --a home that was born of love and died by the hands of hatred. My sister was a little too old for motherhood, but in 1942, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor when Japanese Americans were being rounded up and sent to internment camps, a Japanese couple with a new baby arranged for their infant son to be adopted by my sister and her husband.” Adventure abounds as this unlikely pair try to determine who is dead by sneaking around houses and chasing the Hells Angels away from burning down the town.

Readers will be caught up with the quick pace as the story is infused with humor, mystery and historical facts. The text does not include a foreword, afterward, or author’s note to disclose that the historical details are accurate, however, as a Newbery Award winner and a Scott O’Dell winner the reader can accept that some of the facts are autobiographical and research was completed to validate the evidence.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

Bestseller list on: Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Booksense, Publishers Weekly, New York Times

Publishers Weekly Best Children's Books Winner 2011

American Library Association Notable Books for Children Winner 2012

Scott O'Dell Historical Fiction Award Winner 2012

Newbery Medal Winner 2012

Wyoming Indian Paintbrush Book Award Nominee 2012

Guardian Children's Fiction Prize Nominee 2012

Volunteer State Book Award Nominee 2013

Sequoyah Book Award Nominee 2014

“There's more than laugh-out-loud gothic comedy here. This is a richly layered semi-autobiographical tale, an ode to a time and place, to history and the power of reading.” Horn Book Guide, January 09, 2012

“A bit of autobiography works its way into all of Gantos's work, but he one-ups himself in this wildly entertaining meld of truth and fiction by naming the main character... Jackie Gantos. Like the author, Jackie lives for a time in Norvelt, a real Pennsylvania town created during the Great Depression and based on the socialist idea of community farming. Gradually, Jackie learns to face death and his fears straight on while absorbing Miss Volker's theories about the importance of knowing history. "The reason you remind yourself of the stupid stuff you've done in the past is so you don't do it again." Memorable in every way.” Publishers Weekly, July 25, 2011

“Gantos, as always, deliver bushels of food for thought and plenty of outright guffaws, though the story gets stuck in neutral for much of the midsection. When things pick up again near the end of the summer, surprise twists and even a quick-dissolve murder mystery arrive to pay off patient readers. Those with a nose for history will be especially pleased.” Booklist, August 01, 2011

5. CONNECTIONS

From A Teacher’s Guide to Dead End in Norvelt at http://www.jackgantos.com/static/pdf/Dead-End-in-Norvelt.pdf, students can engage in many activities such as:

Students will brainstorm what type of information is featured in an obituary. Then will write a humorous obituary about an old toy to include personal information.

Have students write a “This Day In History” news article by researching historical events on a day in July or August.

Have students research gun laws in their state and create a two-minute video on gun safety.

Divide the class in groups and have the students pick a chapter and create a one act play in one of the following genres: mystery, soap opera, horror, comedy.

Have students explore the web site of the National First Ladies’ Library to learn more about Eleanor Roosevelt and her contribution to her husband’s New Deal programs at http://www.firstladies.org/biographies/firstladies.aspx?biography=33.

Students will learn about the history and specifications of the Piper Club J-3 at the  National Museum of the U.S. Air Force at http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/MuseumExhibits/FactSheets/Display/tabid/509/Article/195811/piper-j-3c-65-8.aspx.

Have students read the next installment in the Norvelt Series, From Norvelt to Nowhere.

Students can learn more about the author and his other books including links to interviews at http://www.jackgantos.com/about/.