THIS IS THE BEST BOOK IN THE WHOLE ENTIRE UNIVERSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Freak the Mighty
(1993, Fiction - Friendship, Written by Rodman Philbrick)
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Is it age appropriate?
About our ratings -
Is it any good?
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Common Sense says
Outcasts join forces to conquer readers' hearts.
Themes in this book include: family relationships, friendship, peer pressure
updated 01.21.10
Why We Rated This 
for Ages 9 and Up
The good stuff
What to watch out for
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Role models:
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Violence:
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Sex:
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Language:
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Consumerism:
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Drinking, drugs, & smoking:
What Parents Need to Know
This review of Freak the Mighty was written by Monica Wyatt
Parents need to know that one main character has a learning disability and lives with his grandparents because his father was put in prison for murdering his mother. He and his best friend, who is disabled and uses crutches to walk, also endure cruel and emotionally painful treatment at school from their fellow students for being "different." Despite the inherent seriousness of these themes, kids will enjoy the funny writing, quirky and likable characters, high imagination, and suspense. The book also includes a humorous dictionary.
Families Can Talk About
Talk to your kids about the media in their life. We have more tools and tips that can help
- Families can talk about how Max and Freak have been affected by cruel and relentless teasing from their classmates.
- Are Max's criticisms about his brain accurate?
- How does Freak help him see himself in a different light?
- For kids, have you ever teased someone who was different?
- If so, did you feel bad about it later -- and what did you do to make it right?
Have you read it? Review It!
More on Freak the Mighty
Book Summary
A hulking "retard" and a brilliant, crippled boy become strong as they undertake imaginary quests and fight all-too-real criminals. The only thing they can't conquer is time. Max knows that people -- even his own grandparents -- fear him because he looks just like his imprisoned father, who's known as Killer Kane. He's huge, he can hardly read or write, and he lives in his grandparents' basement.
But his new neighbor, Kevin, in his tiny, deformed body, seems willing to accept him. The two become close friends, assuming a new identity when Max begins carrying Kevin on his shoulders. Kevin dubs them Freak the Mighty, and they wander their town using Max's mobility and Kevin's brain to conjure up exciting quests. With Kevin's help, Max learns to read and is allowed out of his special-education classes to join Max in his honors courses. But when Max's father is paroled, Max relives the horrors of his past, while Kevin tries to rescue him.
Is It Any Good?
Funny, scary, suspenseful, and wise, this book can help young readers accept kids who seem different from them. When you don't fit in, and you're a kid, what do you do? Max just suffers alone, compressing his emotions inside his massive body. Kevin fights back by letting his intelligence and his imagination soar beyond his deformed body. Even if he can't save himself, Kevin can save Max. He teaches Max how to use his imagination to create exciting adventures: Houses become castles, swimming pools become moats, and a hardboiled motorcycle mama becomes a damsel in distress. And he teaches readers compassion and that everyone is valuable and has something to contribute.
Through Kevin's courage in the face of his illness, readers learn the importance of not giving up when faced with difficulty, and they witness how Kevin inspires Max's progress. Kevin uses his vocabulary as a weapon and teaches Max how to use the dictionary, his favorite book. Max says that Kevin "pulls it out like Arnold Schwarzenegger pulling out a machine gun or something." Thus the character instills in real kids the power of words.
Publisher’s Details
Publisher: Scholastic Inc., Publication date: 1/1/1993
Number of pages: 169, Price: $5.99 (paperback)
Read Aloud: 9+, Read Alone: 10+
Number of pages: 169, Price: $5.99 (paperback)
Read Aloud: 9+, Read Alone: 10+
Our Members Say
See all 58 member reviews
Most Recent Reviews
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I rate this title on for age 10 and give it
- My highlights are:
- Good role models
FREAK THE MIGHTY (is my favourite book ever!)
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I rate this title on for age 10 and give it
- My highlights are:
- Educational
- Good role models
Freak the mighty
This book is amazing. It will leave you crying. It will make you smile. It will make you laugh. This is the best book i have ever read. It is about a boy named Max and he is 5'10" and he meets this boy named Kevin (Freak). They become best friends and can't get away from each other. People make fun of them but they move on. Then it's Kevin's birthday party. And a fatal accident occurs. You have to read it to get more details. This book made my day and will teach you lessons. It taught me lessons. To not make fun of people because they might come back in a worse way. If you are having problems in life, read this book. It will make you feel either better or worse about yourself.
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I rate this title on for age 6 and give it
great great i am reading it at school and im only 12
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I rate this title on for age 9 and give it
- My highlights are:
- Educational
- Good role models
Loved it alot!
Its a very heartwarming story about 2 boys an their struggle in a town where neither of them belonged. I recommend this book 4 9+ b/c itts not really not scary!
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I rate this title on for age 11 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
- My highlights are:
Predictable yet engaging
It's a very sad book, certainly not for young kids at all, there are alot of violent depictions and the like, but Philbrick makes it so easy to understand and makes the characters so likeable you can't help but not put it down. Based on the book alone, I'm gonna rent the movie it's based on. I'd like to add in another great book by Philbrick: "The Last Book in the Universe," a fascinating sci-fi tale.
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Ratings at a Glance
| 33% | of parents don't think the messages are positive |
| 33% | of parents don't feel there are good role models |
| 33% | of parents say it's educational |
| 33% | of parents say there's too much drinking, drugs, or smoking |
| 33% | of parents say they notice product placement |
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