Hole In My Life [J0473]

2002 HCDJ in Gift-Worthy condition. In this YA self-discovery memoir, a young man journeys from aspiring writer to convicted drug smuggler to writer - behind bars. In the summer of 1971, Jack Gantos was an aspiring writer looking for adventure, cash for college tuition, and a way out of a dead-end job. For ten thousand dollars, he recklessly agreed to help sail a sixty-foot yacht loaded with a ton of hashish from the Virgin Islands to New York City, where he and his partners sold the drug until federal agents caught up with them. For his part in the conspiracy, Gantos was sentenced to serve up to six years in prison. In Hole in My Life, this prizewinning author of over thirty books for young people confronts the period of struggle and confinement that marked the end of his own youth. On the surface, the narrative tumbles from one crazed moment to the next as Gantos pieces together the story of his restless final year of high school, his short-lived career as a criminal, and his time in prison. But running just beneath the action is the story of how Gantos – once he was locked up in a small, yellow-walled cell – moved from wanting to be a writer to writing, and how dedicating himself more fully to the thing he most wanted to do helped him endure and ultimately overcome the worst experience of his life.

Hole in My Life is a raw and honest memoir that explores themes of ambition, incarceration, and the transformative power of writing. A Michael L. Printz and Robert F. Sibert Honor book, it offers a unique perspective on the consequences of youthful mistakes and the resilience of the human spirit.

From recent Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "Powerful. Even though I knew he would be okay, I was still frightened for then 20-year-old Jack Gantos (now an award-winning children’s book author) as he navigated life on his own, eventually ending up in prison. This was a powerful and inspiring read."; "It's such a fun read and it feels so authentic. Like the 'sitting at a porch, drinking with your college buddies you haven't seen for a while, and listening to their stories about the mistakes they have done' kind of authentic."; "A quick but powerful read. I was riveted and impressed. The author is proof that a life can turn around and be productive, even to pursuing and fulfilling his life's dream. In this case, the author is now an author, especially of children's books."; "This memoir is a beautiful story of Jack's journey from wanting to be a writer to becoming a writer. He shapes his life not by his mistakes, but by what he does after them."