by Jerry Spinelli
READER’S GUIDE
Discussion Questions
1. On page 15, Palmer senses “that Henry was not just a member of the group, but also its prey.” Why does Palmer get this impression? Do you think Palmer and Henry are the same in this regard?
2. Palmer’s mother says Beans has “a mean streak.” Palmer’s father calls Beans “a pip.” Until the end of the novel, Palmer would follow Beans anywhere. Why do these characters have such different takes on Beans? What’s your opinion of him? Why do you think he is the leader of his group of friends?
3. On page 29, Palmer reflects on his birthday and determines “life is good.” Then he begins crying. What do you think causes this unexpected reaction?
4. Receiving the “treatment” (getting painfully rapped in the arm by Farquar) is seen as a symbol of honor and toughness. Yet there are plenty of boys in town who try to avoid it by hiding on their birthdays. Why is Palmer willing to undergo the treatment—and is even proud of it—yet is so afraid of, and adverse to, becoming a wringer?
5. After Palmer feeds the pigeon for the first time, he keeps asking himself “Why did I do that? But he knew why. He just did not want to say, not even to himself” (pg. 78). What do you think it is that Palmer doesn’t want to say?
6. When Beans makes it his goal to humiliate Dorothy, she reacts by walking over to Palmer and asking him, “Why are you doing this to me?” (pg. 109). Why would Dorothy address Palmer instead of Beans? Is Palmer to blame?
7. After Nipper is released, and the boys leave Palmer alone, why do you think Dorothy and Palmer begin avoiding each other (pg. 199)?
8. On page 126, Dorothy tells Palmer he doesn’t have to be a wringer, but Palmer states “I can’t not be a wringer…. You have to be a wringer. That’show it always was” (pg. 131). In spite of his words, do you think Palmer has a choice?
9. If being a part of the group is so important to Palmer, why do you think he eventually defies the gang, exclaiming “No nothing! No Treatment! No wringer! No Snots!…My name is Palmer!” (pg. 174–5)? Why is yelling his real name important here?
10. Dorothy claims that Palmer is a hero in his attempt to save Nipper from Beans’s boys and Panther the cat. Do you think Palmer really is a hero in this book?
11. When Palmer attends Pigeon Day at the end of the book, he has trouble finding Nipper because he never put an identifying band on him. But then Palmer reflects that “it is the boy who…wears the collar, that it is never the pigeon, but the boy, who is lost” (pg. 219). What might Palmer mean by this?
Questions for Jerry Spinelli
1. WRINGER is based on such a unique event: the annual Pigeon Day. Where did you get that idea, and what made you decide to write a book about it?
Every September I would read about the annual pigeon shoot in a town about a hundred miles away. I knew there was a story there, but I didn’t know the way into it—until I read of the wringer boys. I asked myself the question, What would happen if, in a town that kills pigeons, one kid doesn’t want to? I followed that question into the story.
2. Palmer takes very good care of Nipper, and your writing about their relationship is so realistic. Have you ever had a pet bird or other animal?
I’ve never had a pet bird, but I have had pet rats, which I’ve written of in other books.
3. Some of the characters’ names in WRINGER are pretty unusual (Palmer, Nipper, Beans, Mutto). How did you name—and nickname—your characters?
Creating names to me is like shopping for clothes: you keep trying on stuff until you find something that looks right, feels right, fits. Kids, of course, nickname each other. Sometimes nicknames are merely descriptive or evocative (Beans, Mutto). Sometimes they carry a connotation. With Palmer, aka “Snots,” I wanted to emphasize his craving for group acceptance by happily accepting a derisive nickname.
4. Are any of the characters in WRINGER based on real people?
I’m sure there are bits of real people, including myself, in most of the characters, but none of them as a whole was inspired by any particular person.
5. Which is your favorite character in WRINGER, and what is it about him or her that you are especially proud of? I guess I’m partial to Dorothy. Her spunk helps steer Palmer in the right direction. No offense to Palmer, but I guess my second-favorite character is Nipper.
6. Have you experienced any of the situations or events you wrote about in WRINGER?
Yes, I’ve been knuckled!
7. There’s so much detail in the description of Nipper and the pigeons. How much research did you conduct about pigeons before writing the story?
I went to a city park and sat on a bench and watched pigeons walk by and took notes one day. And I read a few books.
8. What reactions have you had from readers about WRINGER?
Many readers seem to identify with Nipper and wish a pigeon would land on their windowsill too.
9. How do you want readers to react to Palmer and his story?
I would like readers to make the same decision Palmer does: to value life and humanity over group pressure.
About the Author
JERRY SPINELLI is one of the most gifted storytellers in contemporary children’s literature. His books include the Newbery Medal winner MANIAC MAGEE; LOSER; STARGIRL; CRASH; SPACE STATION SEVENTH GRADE; JASON AND MARCELINE; WHO PUT THAT HAIR IN MY TOOTHBRUSH?; THERE’S A GIRL IN MY HAMMERLOCK; THE LIBRARY CARD; and KNOTS IN MY YO-YO STRING, his autobiography. Jerry Spinelli lives with his wife, Eileen, who is also a writer, in Williamstown, Pennsylvania. He is a graduate of Gettysburg College.
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Other books by Jerry Spinelli
MANIAC MAGEE
SPACE STATION SEVENTH GRADE
JASON AND MARCELINE
WHO PUT THAT HAIR IN MY TOOTHBRUSH?
THERE’S A GIRL IN MY HAMMERLOCK
CRASH
THE LIBRARY CARD
STARGIRL
LOSER
Copyright
WRINGER. Copyright © 1997 by Jerry Spinelli. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
ePub edition January 2008 ISBN: 9780061757525
Version 12102012
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Jerry Spinelli, Wringer
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