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Who the Man

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Thirteen-year-old Earl Pryor is much too big for his age, and much too powerful for the anger that rages within him when classmates tease him, the girl he likes disappoints him, or his parents' problems get too real. Reprint.

186 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

25 people want to read

About the author

Chris Lynch

61 books161 followers
Chris Lynch is the Printz Honor Award-winning author of several highly acclaimed young adult novels, including KILL SWITCH, ANGRY YOUNG MAN, and INEXCUSABLE, which was a National Book Award finalist and the recipient of six starred reviews. He is also the author of FREEWILL, GOLD DUST, ICEMAN, GYPSY DAVY, and SHADOWBOXER, all ALA Best Books for Young Adults; EXTREME ELVIN WHITECHURCH, and ALL THE OLD HAUNTS.

He holds an M.A. from the writing program at Emerson College. He mentors aspiring writers and continues to work on new literary projects. He lives in Boston and in Scotland.

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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
7 reviews1 follower
June 5, 2017
The book " who the man" by Chris Lynch was a very good read. i really enjoyed reading this book because some of the challenges he faced lots of readers who are teenagers could relate t0. this book was also very eventful which i liked and there were not many slow parts of the book. the book also included lots of problems with earls family that i could relate to. i extremly recommend this book you with not regret it.
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7,272 reviews31 followers
April 21, 2021
Earl Pryor, is only thirteen years old, but his size and looks confuses most people. Earl Pryor doesn't have an easy go at it as he tries to navigate though his life, as he settles most of his problems with his fists. Suspended from school for a week, Earl learns some hard lessons, and has to grow his mind to keep up with his outer appearance in this coming of age tale.
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May 16, 2016
“Who the man”
Chris lynch's novel “Who the man” implies that young men who look older than their actual age tend to get made fun of at school by other classmates/students, Lynch goes above and beyond to get this young man’s voice heard. He writes his novel in first person the whole way through so that the readers can get a better idea in their mind about young 13 year old Earl Pryor. Earl Pryor is a 13 and he is psychically big for his age, and he is often mistaken for a man. He has been said to have a “big hairy chest” and “he shaves”. He gets made fun of a lot on his physical app. But he also experiences problems at home with family. His parents do not talk to one another and at home it is quiet..His alienation between him and his peers at school is due to to what is going on at home.”Earl’s life is not anger but a profound emotional ache.” Lynch makes it known later in a the story that this young man is on the road to self-discovery in the midst of it all. He is not letting any of this negative energy that has been occurring in his life get the best of him, Lynch makes it obvious that he is having a hard time growing up in the situations he is in but Earl is also different than the rest, he copes with his obstacles differently, he is learning what it means to be a young man and taking care of himself is the best thing he has ever learned. Lynch’s audience is mostly those at an adolescent age, he does this so that they can learn from young earl’s experience that situations like these do not define you as a person they either make you or break you.This novel can also go for any other person in general regardless of the age because it is a broad statement. Even though earl’s life may be falling apart around him he remains strong and gets through it like a champion. People often mistake him for a big mean guy but he is the sweetest person you would love to get to know more of. His looks are telling people a different story about him, they do not really try to get to know him because his appearance his different but this does not define him. “Right and wrong is a simple deal, and everybody knows it. As long as you have all the facts, right and wrong make themselves very clear to you. If you really want to know” Lynch ties this quote into his novel to get people to realize if you do not know someone or anything about them what you think you know about them does not matter unless you have your facts right and another lesson taught in this novel is to never judge a book by its cover, we may never know what goes on behind closed doors.
905 reviews6 followers
November 11, 2010
I suppose I should begin by saying that I love Chris Lynch as a person. He's gracious and smart and lovely and I kind of adore him. But one of the things that is so fascinating about him is that his writing is all over the place for me. Sometimes (Slot Machine, the Blue-Eyed Son trilogy) it is so perfect and brilliant that I'm filled with sadness because I know I'll never be able to create anything even half as divine. And other times (He-Man Woman-Haters series, this book) where the characters are so reprehensible and the story so annoying and the narrative voice so irksome that I want to set the book on fire so that it will no longer exist in my sphere.

I am curious, though, as to whether he picked up the phrase "moms" (to refer to his mother) from Adam Rapp. Hmmm . . . .
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2,683 reviews157 followers
July 29, 2007
I liked reading this book from Earl's perspective, struggling and stand offish but I hearted his love for his parents, especially his moms! I didn't understand how Earl couldn't let his small best friend in but I guess that is what teens do, don't they?
3,271 reviews52 followers
March 5, 2015
Thirteen-year-old Earl Pryor is much too big for his age, and much too powerful for the anger that rages within him when classmates tease him, the girl he likes disappoints him, or his parents' problems get too real.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews

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