I Funny

The broad humor that runs throughout this heavily illustrated story from Patterson and Grabenstein masks personal pain, demonstrating resiliency in the face of tragedy. Wheelchair-bound middle-schooler Jamie has recently moved in with his aunt’s cheerless family, including—a bit too conveniently—school bully Stevie, Jamie’s new “adoptive brother.” Despite Jamie’s desire to be treated like an ordinary kid (one of the more important themes the authors emphasize) and a dark, lingering unknown (only late in the novel does Jamie reveal the reason for his paralysis and his parents’ absence), humor abounds. Much of it derives from Jamie’s comedic aspirations (he calls himself a “sit-down comic”), which are fueled by his friends’ reactions to his one-liners and the encouragement of his warmhearted uncle. Park’s wisecracking cartoons (not all seen by PW) play an integral role in the storytelling, laying bare Jamie’s fears, triumphs, and sense of humor.

• Jamie Grimm is the disabled protagonist of the story. He enters the Planet's Funniest Kid Comic Contest and wins the Long Island competition, then moves on to the state competition and wins. Next, he will go to the Regionals in Boston. He was involved in a serious car accident two years prior that killed his parents and his younger sister, Jenny, and left him paralyzed from the legs down, and puts him in a wheelchair. He is later relocated from his home in Cornwall in Upstate New York to his aunt and uncle's family (who he nicknamed "the Smileys" because they never smile, even when Jamie makes a joke) in Long Beach.
• Suzie Orolvsky (also known as "Cool Girl") is a girl that Jamie carries her books for. They become good friends and she kisses Jamie at night in the light of the full moon. It is stated that Jamie and Gaynor both have feelings for her. She eventually had to move away to Chicago.
• Stevie Kosgrov is Jamie's adoptive brother and bully. He often makes jokes at his expense saying Jamie is successful because he is disabled.
• Uncle Frankie is Jamie's other uncle. He owns Frankie's Good Eats by the Sea Diner and is shown to be very talented with yo-yo tricks.
• Joey Gaynor is one of Jamie's best friends. He has long hair, a nose ring, and several tattoos. He is said to be obsessed with girls.
• Jimmy Pierce is one of Jamie's best friends. He is said to be nerdy, has glasses, and wears this black hat with a flat top and broad rim. He is a total brainiac and knows everything.
• Gilda Gold is Jamie's (later) girlfriend and admirer. She is shown to be a Boston Red Sox fan.
• Shecky is a kid from Schenectady who competes in the New York finals. He tells distasteful and usually insulting jokes, and is overconfident and arrogant. His catchphrase after telling a joke is "Ba-Boom. Nailed it!".
• Judy Nazemetz is a girl from Manhattan who competes in the New York finals. She is Jamie's friend and apparently has a contract with Disney to become the next Hannah Montana.

• Official James Patterson Middle School web site
• Official James Patterson US web site
• Reviews