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A video interview with

Jack Gantos

Jack Gantos' interesting life has provided the raw material for many of his books. Rotten Ralph, for example, was inspired by an aggressive red cat that Gantos once owned. The Jack Henry middle-grade fiction series was based on Gantos' own adventures as a boy. The award-winning Joey Pigza books resulted from Gantos' interactions with children with ADHD. And Hole in My Life, a book for teens, tells the true story of the time Gantos spent 18 months in prison.

Click on the links below‡ to watch this interview online. You can also read the interview transcript or a short biography of Jack Gantos, or see a selected list of his children's books.

View online

Lifelong renters (1:06)
Because his parents moved so often, Jack Gantos knew he had to "get some personality going."
Dear Diary (2:17)
After reading his older sister's diary, Jack Gantos wanted one of his own. He filled it with interesting stories — like the time his dog got eaten by an alligator.
Rotten Ralph (2:44)
So why isn't Ralph a nice, sweet, fluffy cat? Why is he always so rotten? Watch this video clip to find out.
The first contract (1:41)
Jack Gantos visited all the publishers in Boston until he finally sold his first manuscript.

Visit our sister site, AdLit.org, for additional video clips about Jack Gantos' books for teens.

‡ This video clip will appear in Windows Media Player, which most computers already have installed, or you can download it now. Macintosh users can download the free Flip4Mac playback file, which allows you to play Windows Media files in your Quicktime player.

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