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Crazy Lady | 
 enlarge | Author: Jane Leslie Conly
Creator: Ed Jr Begley
Publisher: Listening Library
Category: Book
List Price: $18.00
Buy New: $13.76
You Save: $4.24 (24%)
New (6) Used (6) from $0.70
Rating:  75 reviews
Sales Rank: 1879299
Format: Unabridged
Media: Audio Cassette
Edition: Unabridged
Reading Level: Ages 9-12
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 4.4 x 0.8
ISBN: 0553526146
EAN: 9780553526141
ASIN: 0553526146
Publication Date: July 6, 1999
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Maxine, short and stocky, with her dark glasses and strange hat and weaving walk, was called the "crazy lady." Ronald, with his eyes open wide and his mouth always parted as if he were about to speak, was her son with special needs. Vernon and his friends would agitate them until they put on a kind of show.
But then Vernon gets to know them and see what their life is really like. He spends an afternoon helping them straighten out their ramshackle house, picking up their littered yard; and sits with Ronald while he watches Lassie and Mickey Mouse Club. And he begins to understand this mother's fierce love for her son, his own loss, and the unexpected strength he finds within this odd little family.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 70 more reviews...
 Doesn't really satisfy. August 25, 2008
Deborah Sandford (Madison, NJ, USA)
From a 2008 perspective, I don't see how 'Crazy Lady' qualified for a Newbery Honor. I am even more baffled as to why this book, published in 1993, showed up on a 7th grade reading list for the 2008-09 school year. Certainly I was intrigued when I read the flyleaf, and hoped that this story, this book, would address the particular problems and nuances of alcoholics in our neighborhood circles. But there was too much going on, and the 'crazy' character became me, the reader! Vernon, a young teen, narrates this story which takes place during the Reagan era. Well, what does a young reader know about the Reagan era? (There are other allusions, too, which don't strike a cord for 2008 readers: the TV show Lassie, actors Tom Selleck and Farrah Fawcett and more.) Conly sloppily uses a casual vernacular of people who are not well-educated. The book has been criticized for its use of bad language, but that is not as bothersome as what the characters say to each other in their moments of unhappiness, frustration and anger. It simply is not believable, and I am saddened to think that young readers might accept that behavior like this is truth among some people. Vernon has five siblings which I couldn't keep track of, several friends, ditto, a mother who died suddenly and an overworked and illiterate 'Daddy'. Crazy Lady Maxine goes on wild benders sometimes, spent time in jail for drunk and disorderly, rants and raves, dresses outlandishly and is poor and lives in squalor. Her son, Ronald, is mentally challenged, and it is unclear if he would progress if only his mother gave him proper care at home and obtained proper medical evaluation for him. Too many persnickety characters come into play and add to the frenzy of disfunction. There are no satisfying resolutions to the story's juxtaposition of events and emotional concepts except to disclose without statement that Vernon is a co-dependent who is trying to fix everything. I was really hoping to get more from this book.
 Reward of Friendship October 2, 2007
Betsy Matheson (Lund, NV USA)
Crazy Lady is a wonderful story of looking past prejudice and finding the good in people. The main character, Vernon, was willing to befriend the "crazy lady" and her handicapped son despite what his friends thought. In doing this, Vernon creates a bond with this family and finds there is more to them than drunken rages from the mother, Maxine, and blank stares from the son, Ronald. With this new found bond, Vernon puts forht his efforts to help this family in need and does all that he can to ensure that Ronald is taken care of, even when outside forces try to tear them apart. This book would be a great read specifically for young adults trying to find their identity and worth by living through a young boy struggling with his own, but finding it in helping his friends.
 wow this was such a good book that i actually finished it!! December 1, 2006
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
this book Crazy Lady was the best book i have ever read . its bout a boy struggling of a death.It was his mother.You can tell that he misses his mother because when he talks about her he says that he can fell his scalp geting hot.Its also about a alcoholic mother named maxine with a mental son named ronald.Vernon really belives in im and enters him in the special olympics.and he buys him all the supplies too.Have fun reading this book
This is Definitely A Winner December 1, 2006
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Vernon is a smart kid who recently lossed him mother. He's learning to cope and to make the best out of any situation. Maxine also has a lot to learn. She acts foolish which makes the book funny by the way she talks and her outfit's has a drinking problem and it gets difficult while shes raising her mentally challenged son Ronald. One day their problems cross each other paths and an unlikely friendship forms between Maxine,Ronald,and Vernon. Through each other they learn how to face deal with life's problems. The book teaches several morals in a way that you don't realize until you finish. This is definitely a winner!
Crazy Lady by Jane Leslie Conly May 11, 2006
Jessica L. Hebert (Lafayette, LA USA)
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Crazy Lady by Jane Leslie Conly is a wonderful story of friendship and differences. The story takes place in a neighborhood of working class America. Young thirteen year old Vernon is dealing with the loss of his mother, struggling in school, and just being an adolescent in the world today. There is also `crazy lady' Maxine who is dealing with raising her mentally handicap son and coping with her drinking problem daily. Eventually the lives of Vernon and Maxine collide due to certain circumstances. Vernon and Maxine develop a friendship over time which changes both their lives. Vernon begins to look at the world around him while learning he has the power to help others. Vernon also learns he shouldn't judge people before getting to know them. Maxine, on the other hand, learns that making the right decisions in life can be trying at times.
Jane Leslie Conly's book portrays the lives of real people in real life situations. The characters in this story come to life through the interesting storyline. This book is a great read and a great book to share with others.
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