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kMIL ALI
(09/18/08)
BEST!
I like this book because it teaches a very good lesson about how to face difficulties and not to be afraid to fail. It is a very good book, and believe me when you open the book you will never stop reading it.
Ryan Lok
(04/04/08)
Student Review
A beautiful and touching book that will never lose interest of any reader. It's one of those books that teach you having to cope with having a tougher life because of disabilities. It seems that most books you read it it's good. It's over. But not this one you would want to keep it in your hearts forever.
Kurk
(11/11/07)
Loser by Jerry Spinelli
My 9 yo son was reading this book as a school assignment. He told me, "Dad you have to read this book. I'll bet you would love it!!" He asked his teacher for another copy, and gave it to me. I started reading it not expecting much, but after having gotten through the first few pages, I read it in one night. Donald Zinkoff the main character in the book is truly a great kid who is wrongfully dubbed a loser by his peers for his lack of physical prowess and scholastic mediocrity. It is outstanding character and compassion that make a truly great person, and this story exemplifies these traits. A wonderful book that was funny at times and tugged the heart strings at others.
Cassie
(06/01/07)
Stunningly Amazing!
Jerry, you did a FANTASTIC job on Loser! I really really enjoyed it. And I can't wait 'till it comes out in video.
toeby
(04/28/07)
Awesome book!
Awesome book!
Rachel
(04/14/07)
awesome!
LOSER has a great message. Any kid who chose the time to think about this could see a drastic improvement in his/her life. Inspirational. Incredible. Realistic.
Pak_Girl
(04/01/07)
Loser
The novel Loser by Jerry Spinelli is a dreadful book. It is concerning a young boy named Donald Zinkoff who is a very positive person and lets nothing pessimistic affect him. He knows about all the negative things going around him. He is disliked among the students in school and addressed the name “Loser”. This book seems to take some readers into the depth of it in Zinkoff’s so-called journey through school, except me.
While Zinkoff grows up, he encounters many troubles in his journey through school life. He is detested among the students at John W. Satterfield Elementary School and considered a laughing stock also known as a Loser. He has a very odd behaviour towards his “bullying”. He does not reply verbally or even physically. Zinkoff just ignores the facts pretending not to know them. Donald gets fascinated by first-time experiences like, the first day of school, writing his full name, the furnace monster in his basement, and also pleasing himself to become a mailman just like his father. Zinkoff has many ups and downs in his life but still, he faces them no matter what. Despite not liking this book, I still learned a lesson, like every reader would probably get; never try to fit in a group or with the popular kids. You will get nowhere with that. There is no problem of being yourself; you should not have to change yourself even a bit to someone’s desire.
I can not connect with this book because I have never been
bullied. But I can still sympathize with the affected people, however I can not empathize. Problems mentioned in this book occur in schools everyday. It has hurt many students and still is. It is very mean to upset someone. We should prevent it from happening in our school. If one sees someone getting pushed around, don’t be one of the people from the crowd to watch the scenario, be the one to consult for help. I perceive that this type of behaviour is awful.
Jerry Spinelli, the author hasn’t shown a lot description about Donald. He should have at least shown a picture of Zinkoff. If that wasn’t promising, then an explanation could have been included maybe telling he is a tall boy with brown eyes etc. If this was contained in the book, it might have made a difference in the portrayal of the novel. The book didn’t seem to have any action in it. It simply wasn’t the type of book that would keep me on the "edge of my chair". It also changed subjects too often. Another reason would be that Jerry Spinelli could have kept this book ongoing or something like another book that continues and concludes it. You obviously can not disclose a child’s life during 1st Grade to 6th Grade in a merely 200 page book. It should absolutely have another book ending it. Even though I didn’t like this book, I still would have wanted to know about the end. That’s just my habit.
I would like to mention it again that Loser is an atrocious book. It should have been taken off the shelves of book stores that have this novel. I would under no circumstances ever recommend this book to readers who are fond of action books. But the ones who like the s-l-o-w type, yes I would recommend it to them.
No Name
(03/23/07)
It sucks!
I have no idea why on Earth did Harper Collins or Scholastic even had in their minds when they agreed to publish his book! This book is the worst book in the whole planet! Even I can right a better book than this. It was SOO S--L--O--W. It barely makes sense. The only reason I read this is because I had to write a Book Review on it. This book didn't even have any sequence, like an order. Okay first of all, why did he(Jerry), even title the book "Loser". It should have been more better. The beginning and ending stank!!! Never read this book people!!!!!!!! Its absolutely HORRIBLE!