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| View Larger Image | Stoner & Spaz
by Ron Koertge
| | List Price: | $6.99 |  | | Available: | Usually ships in 24 hours | | | | | Sales Rank: | 79915 | | Studio: | Candlewick | | | Binding: | Paperback | | Reading Level: | Young Adult | | Number Of Pages: | 176 | | Publication Date: | January 05, 2004 | | Publisher: | Candlewick |
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EDITORIAL REVIEWS |
Product Description
For sixteen-year-old Ben Bancroft — a kid with cerebral palsy, no parents, and an overprotective grandmother — the closest thing to happiness is hunkering alone in the back of the Rialto Theatre and watching Bride of Frankenstein for the umpteenth time. The last person he wants to run into is drugged-up Colleen Minou, resplendent in ripped tights, neon miniskirt, and an impressive array of tattoos. But when Colleen climbs into the seat beside him and rests a woozy head on his shoulder, Ben has that unmistakable feeling that his life is about to change. With unsparing humor and a keen flair for dialogue, Ron Koertge captures the rare repartee between two lonely teenagers on opposite sides of the social divide. His smart, self-deprecating protagonist learns that kindred spirits may be found for the looking — and that the resolve to follow your passion can be strengthened by something as simple as a human touch. |
Amazon.com
Colleen Minou is a hard-core stoner, a girl whose motto is, "I'll get high and do anything." Ben Bancroft is a movie-addicted preppie who suffers from cerebral palsy, "the resident spaz, invisible as the sign that says NO RUNNING, the one no one pays attention to." Together, they form the most unlikely couple since Dharma and Greg. He's Brooks Brothers, she's Salvation Army. He's never even smoked a cigarette, she's got 20 different chemicals running through her veins. But when these two lonely teens meet one night at Ben's favorite hang, the Rialto (a classic film theatre that "smells like butter from the Paleozoic"), sparks fly. At least for Ben they do. Maybe it's because Colleen's the first girl to ever really notice him, to have the nerve to tease him about his disability instead of pretend it's not there. For once, Ben is actually more interested in his real life than a movie. Colleen takes him clubbing, lights his first joint, even challenges him to direct his own movie. But when Ben, in turn, dares her to stay straight, Colleen admits that, despite his devotion, she still needs the drugs to "smooth out the edges." Is Ben capable of convincing her otherwise? If not, how will he ever be cured of his Colleen addiction? Author of the acclaimed Brimstone Journals, Ron Koertge's wry depiction of this car wreck of a relationship is sharply observed and wholly original. Teen readers will have a tough time turning the last page of this oddly endearing, screwball love story. (Ages 13 and older) --Jennifer Hubert |
CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.0 based on 41 reviews)
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Complete Opposites 
Ben has always been a misfit; he was born with cerebral palsy which made one side of his body shriveled and unusable. He thinks people are constantly making fun of him or feeling pity for him, and he hates feeling that way. Now he is in high school, living with his grandmother, and he has no friends. He spends spare time at the old movie theater in town, watching classic movies by himself.
One night Colleen, a girl from his school, comes and sits next to him at the movie theater. She is a drug addict who only seems to care about getting high. Colleen is the total opposite of Ben in every possible way, but she is the only person he has ever seen try to make a connection with him. Rather than shy away from him or pretend he or his disability doesn't exist, she touches him and teases him about his cerebral palsy. She becomes his first real friend and he hopes a possible love interest.
Through Colleen's friendship and the advice of a new woman who moves into his neighborhood, Ben starts to make moves toward interacting with more people in his school. Could it be possible that he is always alone not because his classmates are nervous around him but that he purposely sets himself apart from them?
I liked Ben's personality and the way it came through in his monologues in this book. His partial paralysis was always on his mind somewhere, but he didn't spend his whole life feeling sorry for himself.
July 02, 2007 | |
Think "Crank" meets "Freak the Mighty" and "Stargirl" 
Most every buddy movie or novel imaginable pairs two people who are vastly different and puts them in close quarters, usually a situation neither party really wants to be in. They end up learning from one another, since their personalities, interests and strengths are complementary to one another. Often times there is a "straight" one--meaning one who follows the rules, and is on a straight and narrow path in life. Then, there is a wild and zany one, who has a zest for life that is both annoying at times to our straight man but ultimately infectious, instructive, and life-altering.
While "Stoner and Spaz" does tend to follow this basic framework, the characters are very real and likeable. Ben is a high school loner who suffers from cerebral palsy, while Colleen is a drug addict who happens to attend the same school. They happen to meet in a movie theater, and immediately their strange relationship begins. Author Ron Koertge has a real flair for convincing dialogue, especially between teenage characters. He doesn't shy away from the F-bomb just for the sake of admission into the young adult canon. While parallels can be made to other young adult novels such as "Freak the Mighty," "Bridge to Terabithia," and perhaps "Stargirl," what Koertge has created is a believable, raw portrait of two vastly different people coming together and emerging totally different in the end.
My only complaint is that some of the characters and their actions seem perhaps a bit implausible, like Colleen's popular, well-built boyfriend who could easily pummel Ben but instead shows unlikely restraint. Despite this and some other sugar-coated scenes of implausibility, most of this book rings true and doesn't shy away from difficult subjects.
As a middle school teacher, I was disappointed that such a well-written novel simply could not be adopted by my conservative school district, given the language, the sex, and the drug usage, but I think that high-schoolers would enjoy this quick, truthful read.
June 26, 2007 | |
unexpected changes 
This book is about a boy named Ben who has cerebral palsy. He lives with his over protected grandmother because his dad died and his mom ran away. One day he goes into the Rialto Theater and he meets Colleen, a drug addict from his school. After that Ben and Colleen make a friendship. Colleen treats Ben as if he was normal and he starts to fall in love with her. When Ben meets the new neighbor, Marcie she gives him a camera and helps him start a documentary about school and the truth about it. Colleen and Ben then sort of become boyfriend and girlfriend, but never really called each other that. Then with Colleen's drug problem, she finds herself into the hospital. The day of Ben's movie, he finds Colleen buzzed with drugs when she was trying to quit her problem. From there Ben realizes Colleen will never change
The parts of the book I really liked were how the author really told it how it is and how life is really like for teenagers with certain problems. I also liked how the author added what people with C.P. really go through. For example how hard it was for Ben to put his clothes on. I like how the author defiantly showed what each characters personalities were like. Each of the characters all a different personalities, Such as Ben wasn't anything like Molly or Marcie or Colleen. They were all unique. I love how funny the book was! It made me laugh a lot.
Some things I didn't like were how at the end it just left you hanging. You didn't know what was in store for Ben's future. I also didn't like how many times cuss words were said in this book but I understand it went with the certain characters personalities.
I think that anyone who likes to know what things are like for someone with a certain problem or disorder should read this book. Anyone who likes funny books or dramatic comedies would love this book!
April 25, 2006 | |
Underestimated
This book was better than I expected it to be. I thought it would be filled with pointless conflicts between characters, but it all made sense. Ron Koertge writes Colleen and Ben with such sophistication you forget they're only sixteen. I also loved the humor he added here and there. I especially loved the grandma, who reminded me of Rue McClanahan. The whole book made sense, until the end. The end was bit rushed, and didn't seem to fit. In my opinion, Koertge could've gone on to make a longer book, just to clarify the ending. But everything before hand, was PERFECT! Definetley more than a romance novel for the MTV generation.
April 09, 2006 | |
It was okay
Stoner and Spaz was an okay book. It could have been better the ending was disapointing and I was expecting something more between the two main characters. The idea that some one will go all the way through rehab and then go back to drugs is believable but the fact that a person will get an aword for a movie on the first try is very unlikly.
November 02, 2005 | |
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