The Cat Ate My Gymsuit
| Author | Paula Danziger |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Young adult novel |
| Publisher | Putnam |
|
Publication date
|
1974 |
| Media type | Print Paperback |
| Pages | 160 pp |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 67616260 |
| Followed by | There's a Bat in Bunk Five |
The Cat Ate My Gymsuit (1974) is a young adult novel written by Paula Danziger.
The story follows Marcy Lewis, an amply-contoured ninth-grader who hates her looks. She has a verbally abusive father and it seems her parents, Martin and Lily Lewis, are always fighting. She also has a younger brother named Stuart who tends to carry his teddy bear, Wolf, with him everywhere he goes. Her dad doesn't make her feel good about her excuses that result in her failing gym for the year. Marcy refuses to take gym due to her insecurity over her large figure. Marcy only has one friend, Nancy Sheridan. Nancy later admits she was Marcy's friend only because her mother told her to be, as both of their mothers were friends and participated in the PTA. Later on, Nancy grows to like Marcy as a good friend. However as Nancy was very popular Marcy sometimes got jealous of her.
Her English teacher, Mr. Edwards, leaves after the first month, believed to have taken a job in administration. After going through a lot of substitute teachers, the school hires Barbara Finney, a teacher whose methods are completely unorthodox, and, unlike most of her teaching colleagues, was willing to listen to her students. Through a school club she sets up, called Smedley, Marcy meets a lot of new friends. She even meets a boy who seems to be attracted to her, Joel Anderson, whose attorney father works with the Board of Education.
Then one day, the principal, Mr. Stone, comes to observe Ms. Finney. She teaches the syllabus material well, but the same unorthodox teaching techniques that work for the kids by Ms. Finney are abhorred by the school administrators, including Stone, and the vice principal, Mr. Goldman. Marcy and her friends suddenly find themselves coming to Ms. Finney’s defense when she is threatened with the loss of her job, mainly because she refuses to say the Pledge of Allegiance.
Marcy and her friends help start a protest and she, along with her friends, are suspended by Mr. Stone. During the situation with Ms. Finney, Marcy gains an ally in her mother, who is the president of the PTA. This pits both Marcy and Lily against Martin, who, like Mr. Stone, believes that Ms. Finney isn't a proper teacher, and is unpatriotic, and because of that, should be fired. Joel's father joins the fight and sides with his son, much like Lily sides with Marcy. Also siding with Lily and Marcy was Nancy's parents. Of the four students, besides Marcy's father, Robert Alexander's mother sides with Stone against Ms. Finney, and punishes her son for his involvement in the protest.
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