Hanging on to Max

by Margaret Bechard

Book Overview

Bechard writes with humor and empathy, weaving the story of 17-year-old Sam in a very real look at the lives of teen fathers today. "A breath of fresh air--a poignant winner of a book."--"School... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0689862687
• ISBN13: 9780689862687
• Release Date: December 2003
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
• Length: 208 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.1" x 7.1"
• Age Range: 12 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Grades 7 to 12

Customer Reviews

Good

I have to give him credit for doing the right thing and taking care of his son

Ann " hanging on to max"

When I started reading this book " Hanging on to Max" I became intersted very quickly. At first I know it had to do with a baby. So I read the back of the book to find out more. After reading that I know I had to buy this book and start reading right away. Hanging on to Max is about a young teen named Sam who has a girlfriend named Brittany. As the relationship moves on Brittany becomes pregant. After Brittany has her child, she then wants to give her child up for adoption. Sam feels that he can't give his child up, so works hard to take care of his son, Max, and tries his best to stay in school. Now Sam is raising his son on his own. So Sam gets his SAT scores back and since they are high scores Sam can go to college, but Sam has a big decision to back. Will Sam give up Max so he can go to college? I believe that this book can relate to alot of teens who have a child and are raising their baby on their own.

Life at its core.

17-year-old Sam has taken custody of his newborn son and with the help of his own father, is adjusting to fatherhood while trying to maintain life as a high school senior. The novel explores the emotional rollercoasters teen parents might face without glorifying or simplifying it. This book is a refreshing one, not only for its teen male perspective, but for its lack of propaganda against teen sex. Bechard acknowledges that teenagers have sex and become parents without adopting a scolding tone in what could have easily become a 200-page advertisement for abstinence. Instead, she depicts a realistic look at teenagers struggling to find themselves in their new roles as parents. They've become parents, a situation that cannot be reversed. What to do now? Only Sam can answer that question for himself and Max. This book takes you on the journey as Sam and his peers try to find their answers. Since the book's core themes relate to daily life, not just teen parenting, the book is really for anyone who's ever struggled (or is currently struggling) with a sense of a lost identity. It made me think about who I am as a person, and how I came to be the way I am.

Hanging On To Max With A Prayer

I just finished this book today and was very impressed.This is the story of Sam. A high school student who got his girlfriend Brittany pregnant. She had the baby, then deciding she wasn't ready to be a mother, decided to give him up for adoption. Sam isn't ready to let go of his newborn son and decides to become custodial parent of young Max, waving farewell to Brittany as she and her family leave Oregon for Boise, Idaho where she can start a new life.However, Sam is just beginning his new existence while he tries to juggle school, his friends, his love interests, family, and Max. Everyone admires him for accepting the responsibility although he feels awkward at his alternative school with the daycare program where he's the only MALE single parent.Max is prepared to give up any hopes of college or a life of his own, agreeing to become a construction worker after he graduates this, his senior year, of high school to pay back his dad for all the baby expenses. Then, she comes along.He never forgot Claire, the girl he'd had a crush on since the 6th grade who he left behind at his regular high school along with his best friend Andy. Now she reappears in his life with her infant daughter Emily. As they adjust to newfound parenthood together while trying to forge a relationship, Sam tries to become used to this new routine although a part in him cries out for something more, that will lead to the ultimate life-changing decision: can he keep Max?This sad, but sweet tale will leave you pitying the main characters and wondering what you'd do in Sam's place. Great read.

A Needed Novel

Sam Pettigrew is a senior in high school. And he has a baby. Yes-a baby. His girlfriend got pregnant the previous year, decided that she couldn't handle raising the baby, and Sam felt a need to raise his son. Now, Sam's going to an alternative high school and juggling classes, college hopes...and baby Max. The mix only gets tougher when he meets Claire, a fellow teenage parent who Sam definitely has feelings for. Yet no matter what happens, Sam is determined to prove to the world that he's not a stupid teenage guy and that he CAN hang on to Max. Like I said, this is definitely a book that needed to be written and needs to be read. Many of us at some point or another have read the typical "pregnant teenage girl" novels and they certainly offer valuable perspectives. Yet it seems that we rarely come into contact with novels that explore a MALE's feelings about the issue. "Hanging Onto Max" definitely corrects this problem. But "Hanging Onto Max" is more than just a mediocre novel with a rarely-done perspective- its main character is just as memorable as the content. I literally checked this book out from the library, read the first page, and raced through the novel until I finished it. Sam is just that kind of a character. He is realistically "male" without being a stereotype, and his thoughts and words reverberate with a piercing, understated truth. Flashbacks of Sam's experiences with his girlfriend and of life "before" are also unusually well done. Through them, Bechard managed to perfectly capture Sam's previous experiences and thus allow the reader to understand his current situation better. As I read, I felt like Sam was really a person-he is one of those characters you literally feel a "warmth" and empathy toward. The writing is blunt, quick, and free of pretentious prose. This only makes Sam better. Without a doubt, "Hanging Onto Max" succeeds at exploring one of the toughest issues. Not only is it from an intriguing male perspective, it deals with the issue of teen pregnancy with realism, empathy, and a fearlessness when it comes to exploring the gut-wrenching choices that those involved must make.

Hanging on to this book!!

Hanging on to Max by Margaret Bachard is a book about a boy named Sam Pettigrow living through his senior year as a parent. Sam was no typical 17-year boy. At this stage of the game Sam was already changing diapers and pushing around strollers. Sam was a teenage father balancing parenting duties and schoolwork. His former girlfriend Brittney couldn?t handle being a teenage mother and was going to give up her new baby boy, Max. Sam couldn?t let this happen so he took over the roll of being a father. Sam started to go to an alternative school that had a day care built into it for teenage mothers and fathers. Sam was so busy juggling schoolwork and taking care of Max and never had anytime for himself. Sam meets a former friend Emily from his old high school who also is a parent. Emily shows Sam that things aren?t as easy as they should be. This story was heartbreaking, humorous, you can relate to this story and was very realistic. I really enjoyed reading this story and I think you would enjoy reading this story also if your a boy or girl anyone can benefit from reading this and you can learn many things from reading this story.