Freak the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick

Bibliographic Information

Philbrick, R. (1993). Freak the Mighty. New York, NY: Scholastic, Inc. ISBN: 0439286069.

Plot Summary

Max is big and kind of scary looking. Some of the fear factor is due to his size and some of it is due to his genetics. Max's dad is in prison for murdering Max's mother, so Max lives his grandparents. When a strange, misshapen boy with an odd way of talking moves in next door, Max's life and his opinion of himself undergo a radical change. Max and Freak become friends and together they accomplish more than each is capable of on his own. However, when Max's dad escapes from prison, will their friendship and combined skills be enough to save the day?

Review

This is a touching tale of friendship between two unlikely souls. The bullying in the book highlights how any weakness can be exploited by bullies. Even though Max is physically capable of destroying his tormentors, his feelings of intellectual inadequacy prevent him from solving his own problems. Freak, on the other hand, is almost completely helpless physically and is subject to the physical intimidation of the bullies in the story. However, it is his brain that makes him the more resilient of the pair. The message of the book is two-fold: friends should help each other stand against their tormentors and victims are less likely to face psychological damage from bullying if they are fully aware of their own strengths and personal value.