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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. Gantos was awarded the 2012 Newbery Medal for his novel Dead End in Norvelt, featuring a 12-year-old character named Jack Gantos.