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Making Up Megaboy
Despite the fact that those in the community find it impossible that he could be the one to have shot the old man, Robbie Jones knows differently because he knows what really happened. Reprint.
64 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
May 4, 2022
Robbie shot and killed a man on his 13th birthday. Though he confesses, he offers no motive or apologies, and those around him (parents, friends, classmates, community members) are left to deal with the uncertainty and shock.
What a strange little novel. It feels slight and reads quickly, with heavily illustrated pages and unconventional text. There could have been more connection between the words and images, but the graphic aspect is very appealing, especially to reluctant readers.
It feels very true to life, in that sometimes people we thought will knew will shock us, and there are no easy answers as to why. You can speculate and discuss but you'll always wonder. I felt sorry for Robbie, who seemed lonely and sad, and for his mom and dad, who were worried and scared and angry, and while I didn't like it, I understood that his classmates found it sensational and exciting.
A poignant read that reflects the reality of life.
What a strange little novel. It feels slight and reads quickly, with heavily illustrated pages and unconventional text. There could have been more connection between the words and images, but the graphic aspect is very appealing, especially to reluctant readers.
It feels very true to life, in that sometimes people we thought will knew will shock us, and there are no easy answers as to why. You can speculate and discuss but you'll always wonder. I felt sorry for Robbie, who seemed lonely and sad, and for his mom and dad, who were worried and scared and angry, and while I didn't like it, I understood that his classmates found it sensational and exciting.
A poignant read that reflects the reality of life.
May 18, 2012
REVIEW: Making Up Megaboy
Walter, V. & Roecoelein K. (1998). Making Up Megaboy. New York: Delacorte Press.
62 pages.
Appetizer: Told in many different voices with striking images to match the monologues, Making Up Megaboy tries to understand a thirteen-year-old's motive to kill an elderly shop owner. Aside from speaking to admit he did kill the old man, Robbie will not speak, except to ask for art supplies so he could draw a comic of his only friend and his creation, Megaboy.
Some of the potential motives surrounding Robbie's actions include his crush on a girl from school, dissatisfaction with his racist father, not having been taught right from wrong, being an outsider, and on and on.
This novella is an interesting experiment. With no clear answers about what caused Robbie to kill someone, its up to the reader to make connections, make meaning and draw their own conclusions about what was going through the boy's head and what caused him to act the way he did.
Making Up Megaboy would be a good book to have students make arguments about, using support from the text. Since the book is so short, it would be very easy for students to make connections across the text without getting overwhelmed. It also would be a good sample project to have students explore voice and different perspectives, all circling around an event or the experience of one character. I'd also consider pairing the novella with Walter Dean Myers's Monster to show to very different approaches to trying to understand characters who face consequences for the deaths of others.
Due to the sensitive nature of the story, it is probably a book I would want to get parental permission for before sharing with students.
Dinner Conversation:
"It was his birthday, three months ago today. He just turned thirteen. He was too old for a birthday party, but we gave him a fancy new mountain bike at breakfast. I thought he was pleased with it. He said he liked it.
I didn't think he even knew about my husband's gun. We never showed it to him. We never talked about it." (p. 9)
"Robert kept the gun in the dresser, in his sock drawer. Robbie never had any reason to go in there.
Lord, I will never understand why he did it. I asked myself every day what went wrong, but I can't find any answers. He wasn't a bad boy. He didn't have bad friends, except maybe that Mexican boy who hung around for a while.
Why would Robbie shoot somebody on his birthday? It should have been a happy day." (p. 9)
"People in Santa Rosita are in shock about the incident that took place here two days ago, when a thirteen-year-old boy shot and killed Jae Lin Koh, the elderly proprietor of a liquor store on Main Street. The boy who allegedly committed this violent crime has not been identified officially because of his age, but classmates at the Kennedy Middle School know who he is." (p. 19).
"Me and him made up stories all the time about a superhero called Megaboy. Megaboy is kind of like Popeye in those old comics, you know? He just looked ordinary until he ate his spinach, and then his muscles popped out all buff? Megaboy just looks all ordinary until he eats these special chips. I mean, they look just like regular potato chips or something, but they're really coated with megaspice that made him all strong and everything. Mostly Megaboy takes care of little kids that are in trouble and finds lost pets and stuff. We made up stories together. Then Robbie'd draw the pictures, and I'd write the words" (p. 20).
Tasty Rating: !!!
Walter, V. & Roecoelein K. (1998). Making Up Megaboy. New York: Delacorte Press.
62 pages.
Appetizer: Told in many different voices with striking images to match the monologues, Making Up Megaboy tries to understand a thirteen-year-old's motive to kill an elderly shop owner. Aside from speaking to admit he did kill the old man, Robbie will not speak, except to ask for art supplies so he could draw a comic of his only friend and his creation, Megaboy.
Some of the potential motives surrounding Robbie's actions include his crush on a girl from school, dissatisfaction with his racist father, not having been taught right from wrong, being an outsider, and on and on.
This novella is an interesting experiment. With no clear answers about what caused Robbie to kill someone, its up to the reader to make connections, make meaning and draw their own conclusions about what was going through the boy's head and what caused him to act the way he did.
Making Up Megaboy would be a good book to have students make arguments about, using support from the text. Since the book is so short, it would be very easy for students to make connections across the text without getting overwhelmed. It also would be a good sample project to have students explore voice and different perspectives, all circling around an event or the experience of one character. I'd also consider pairing the novella with Walter Dean Myers's Monster to show to very different approaches to trying to understand characters who face consequences for the deaths of others.
Due to the sensitive nature of the story, it is probably a book I would want to get parental permission for before sharing with students.
Dinner Conversation:
"It was his birthday, three months ago today. He just turned thirteen. He was too old for a birthday party, but we gave him a fancy new mountain bike at breakfast. I thought he was pleased with it. He said he liked it.
I didn't think he even knew about my husband's gun. We never showed it to him. We never talked about it." (p. 9)
"Robert kept the gun in the dresser, in his sock drawer. Robbie never had any reason to go in there.
Lord, I will never understand why he did it. I asked myself every day what went wrong, but I can't find any answers. He wasn't a bad boy. He didn't have bad friends, except maybe that Mexican boy who hung around for a while.
Why would Robbie shoot somebody on his birthday? It should have been a happy day." (p. 9)
"People in Santa Rosita are in shock about the incident that took place here two days ago, when a thirteen-year-old boy shot and killed Jae Lin Koh, the elderly proprietor of a liquor store on Main Street. The boy who allegedly committed this violent crime has not been identified officially because of his age, but classmates at the Kennedy Middle School know who he is." (p. 19).
"Me and him made up stories all the time about a superhero called Megaboy. Megaboy is kind of like Popeye in those old comics, you know? He just looked ordinary until he ate his spinach, and then his muscles popped out all buff? Megaboy just looks all ordinary until he eats these special chips. I mean, they look just like regular potato chips or something, but they're really coated with megaspice that made him all strong and everything. Mostly Megaboy takes care of little kids that are in trouble and finds lost pets and stuff. We made up stories together. Then Robbie'd draw the pictures, and I'd write the words" (p. 20).
Tasty Rating: !!!
September 2, 2016
Lit Log for Making Up Megaboy
By Virginia Walter and Katrina Roeckelein
To be perfectly honest, I would not classify this book as a work of literature. Possibly it could be a work of art and a valid way of expressing one’s self, but not literature. I didn’t even like a lot of the graphics. The photography manipulation I liked, but mostly because I enjoy doing that myself with my own photos. I would some day like to use my photos along with words in order to create a book, but this went a step too far for me. I don’t think I would teach this book in a literature class. I might use it as an example though for students to look at for creating a personal and very expressive piece of creative writing.
Making Up Megaboy is more a collage than a cohesive story. I found it distracting, jumping back and forth from character to character, not to mention jumping through so many different type styles. There is some merit to using varying type styles, but for some reason, there was just too much in this book. It reminded me of something my creative writing professor once told me about. She said that she encourages students to use creative form and font in their poetry, but when computers first came out and people were able to easily center type, they centered EVERYTHING just for the sake of centering it.
Another frustrating thing about this book was that I wanted to hear Robbie’s voice more, even if there had been more episodes about Megaboy. Also, the ending… well, there wasn’t one. The book just dropped off.
There were some good parts to this book, however. The picture on pages 24-25 of the school hallway was one of my favorites. It was so simple, but it was poignant. I also liked the fact that this book gave so many different perspectives and reactions. My favorite one was the reaction of the classmate on page 41 who “wondered what he (Robbie) was really like inside” (Walter, p. 41). He seemed more perceptive when it came to Robbie than anyone with the exception of Robbie’s friend Ruben.
Ruben presented an interesting character and conflict. Robbie’s father was always making comments about “that Mexican boy” his son was hanging out with, believing that Ruben’s influence was to blame for Robbie’s actions. In reality, Ruben was probably the best thing for Robbie. Robbie and Ruben were also able to cross the cultural barriers despite the attitude of Robbie’s parents. Indeed, Ruben talked about Robbie making Megaboy alternately white and Mexican.
I, like everyone else, wanted to know WHY Robbie shot that man. In the end, I was frustrated because there was no answer to that question.
February 2, 2008
This came highly recommended to me by one of my coworkers, but I really didn't like it at all. It tells the story of thirteen-year-old Robbie Jones, who, for no discernable reason, has shot and killed an elderly shopkeeper. "Tells the story" makes it seem as though there is a coherent narrative here, which is misleading. The reader is given a number of points of view from different community members, including Robbie's parents and the other kids at school. Robbie never actually speaks for himself, and the authors give only the barest hints at why he committed the crime. I found most of the viewpoints given to be shallow and stereotypical, and the whole exercise feels pretty pointless. It's a brave attempt -- the design of the book is interesting, and I can kind of see what Walter and Roekelein were trying to evoke, but it falls majorly short of the mark.
December 29, 2011
How... rather post modern. While Making Up Megaboy isn't particularly enjoyable, at least in a typical way, as it lacks the satisfaction of a definite ending, it is very intriguing as a book and would be great for exploration even in a classroom. I also found the graphics to be too stimulating and vacant at the same time? I just wish that there had been a more deliberate feel to them and potentially better integration with the story where they carried a greater burden rather than sort of just "livening things up." As I discovered through a conversation with a friend, there just need to be more ideas packed in here to open up pathways for reader inquiry and active development of the "story."
September 13, 2009
This story had real potential.
Robbie Jones, this quiet, seemingly well-adjusted 13-year old kid, unexpectedly shoots a man in his neighborhood for no apparent reason, so the question becomes WHY?
Each couple of pages is a different point of view and another piece of the puzzle about who Robbie is and why he might have murdered someone. You get different perspectives from places like the local newspaper report, the police department, other kids at school, and Robbie's best friend, which is so clever.
BUT. The book ended really abruptly and too many things were left unanswered for me. Bummer.
Robbie Jones, this quiet, seemingly well-adjusted 13-year old kid, unexpectedly shoots a man in his neighborhood for no apparent reason, so the question becomes WHY?
Each couple of pages is a different point of view and another piece of the puzzle about who Robbie is and why he might have murdered someone. You get different perspectives from places like the local newspaper report, the police department, other kids at school, and Robbie's best friend, which is so clever.
BUT. The book ended really abruptly and too many things were left unanswered for me. Bummer.
November 12, 2013
This book is about a young boy who stole a gun and shot a local drugstore owner. The story is told from the point of view of several different people that were connected to him in some way and how they relate to the main character. The young boy makes up comics about a super hero named megaboy and his adventures. This boy is about heavier topics including bullying and murder, so I would definitely only use it with older students. I would also have a serious discussion with my students about these topics before allowing them to read the book
Read
November 3, 2014Trigger warning: violence
Making Up Megaboy tells the story of a middle school student who shoots a Korean shop owner. Each chapter is told through a different perspective, but each character is asked to discuss the shooting. Students will be interested in this novel because it is fast paced and covers a story that isn't often discussed in our culture. I haven't read this text, but from what I understand it may be good to include in a unit on media portrayals. I would also include it on a bookshelf in my classroom for SSR or book workshops.
Making Up Megaboy tells the story of a middle school student who shoots a Korean shop owner. Each chapter is told through a different perspective, but each character is asked to discuss the shooting. Students will be interested in this novel because it is fast paced and covers a story that isn't often discussed in our culture. I haven't read this text, but from what I understand it may be good to include in a unit on media portrayals. I would also include it on a bookshelf in my classroom for SSR or book workshops.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 14, 2013
This book is geared towards middle school children (grades 6th-8th), but could also be used at the high school level. It could be used as a great Reader's Theatre activity where each child could take on a different character to tell the story. It is a book that creates meaningful conversation and allows children to dive into the text and discuss things below the surface. It allows students to connect to the characters and try to see how they would react to a serious situation.
November 10, 2013
Not sure if this was fiction or not. It's told in a way that to me seems like a picture book. You're not told why Robbie committed the crime. What bugged me was 2 things: One was the father being mad that his son couldn't be more normal, and two: No one seemed to care about the victim Mr. Koh and HIS family. They were affected as well. It's a very juvenile book, but the topic hits home for everyone.
April 28, 2014
This is a somewhat sad but interesting story that is told by the perspectives of different individuals who are involved with or apart of a developing story where a boy kills a local store owner. This is a sensitive read so the teacher should gage their class to see if they can read and appreciate the story, but it is very interesting in the way that it is written. I appreciated being introduced to this book overall.
April 6, 2015
I went through the shelves, looking for books that never went out of my library.....
On his thirteenth birthday, Robbie Jones takes a gun and kills an elderly shopkeeper. This spare book, just 62 pages long and filled with illustrations, explores what caused a quiet boy to do such a violent act by interviewing friends, family,police, and onlookers.
On his thirteenth birthday, Robbie Jones takes a gun and kills an elderly shopkeeper. This spare book, just 62 pages long and filled with illustrations, explores what caused a quiet boy to do such a violent act by interviewing friends, family,police, and onlookers.
September 27, 2013
This book should be used for mature students as it is about a shooting. It has many different characters and takes into account their perspectives. Because of that, this book is great for a Reader's Theater or something of that sort. I highly recommend it if you want to talk about social and controversial issues.
Read
February 4, 2016In documentary style, family members, friends, classmates and community members express varied reactions to 13-year-old Robbie Jones’ inexplicable, unexpected shooting and killing of a Korean liquor store owner. Good for reluctant readers. Violence, guns, shooting. Illustrated with computer enhanced photos and graphics.
November 17, 2007
Source: ALSC Notable Book 1999
Age Range: 8-13
Quality: Writing is good. Good use of different viewpoints and graphics.
Potential Use: classroom discussion, free voluntary reading
Child Appeal: characters are real and engaging. Graphics draw you in.
Age Range: 8-13
Quality: Writing is good. Good use of different viewpoints and graphics.
Potential Use: classroom discussion, free voluntary reading
Child Appeal: characters are real and engaging. Graphics draw you in.
June 9, 2009
I read this book in my children's literature class eight years ago, and still remember how powerful this book was upon reading it. If you are looking for a book that deals with today's issues while looking at the same story from multiple perspectives, this is the book for you.
September 19, 2013
This book is tailored towards 5th and 6th grade students. It is a great Reader's Theatre activity that would provide lots of meaningful conversation about real life issues that happen in our world. It is an authentic read that many students should be able to connect to.
March 30, 2014
This story is told in a documentary format and is edgy. It revolves around a thirteen-year-old boy that killed a storeowner. Making Up Megaboy leaves a lot for readers to discuss and evaluate since a lot of answers are not provided.
April 7, 2014
This book is very easy to make engaging and a very interesting book to introduce perspectives. I will say I did not like how the ending left you hanging but that might facilitate a good writing activity.
April 7, 2014
This book was an interesting idea and it combined a lot of interesting media and perspectives. Overall I did not really care for the story but I do think this book pertains to the Middle School classroom and should be read.
May 5, 2014
This book is definitely for more mature readers. Its exploration of the thoughts about a child after he commits a murder can be confusing for young readers. It does take a good approach to exploring a very difficult topic.
February 5, 2008
Interesting snippets of various characters' points-of-view of a seemingly senseless murder in a small town. A quick read, but worth a look.
Read
January 17, 2010Interesting little book. A bit of a cliffhanger. Would be a great youth group discussion book.
March 10, 2013
Making up Megaboy is a great text to teach multiple perspectives with. It works for middle school and even intermediate elementary.
November 7, 2013
This was a cool book, it gives a bagillion different perspectives on a situation for students to form their own opinion about what justifies a *horrible* action
April 1, 2014
This book is about a tragic shooting committed by a student. It features multiple perspectives and is an issue worth talking about. I would use this with middle school students.
April 1, 2014
shows different perspectives, prompts strong discussion, I would not be afraid to use it in my class but I would have to know my students well and preface the book well
April 6, 2014
I think this is a great book for examining race relations in the U.S. It is important to recognize who was included in the book and who was left out due to the broad nature of the book.
April 9, 2014
This book should be used for upper elementary or middle school. This book can be used to bring up and discuss very important issues that are often hard to talk about.
July 29, 2016
This is a good book, but a little serious for younger children.
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