Early Chapters
Where does Jamie live?
In Long Beach, a suburb of New York
Explain why Jamie thought it was awesome that Stevie punched him
Stevie treated him like a regular, normal kid--not a special needs kid.
Why does Jamie call his adoptive family “the Smileys”?
They never, ever smile.
What does Jamie like best about the Long Beach boardwalk?
He likes to see all the different kinds of people.
Stevie calls Jamie “the crip from Cornball”. What does Stevie have against Jamie? Why does he hold it against him?
Stevie wanted the garage for his bedroom and Jamie got it. Stevie thought it would be really easy to sneak out at night to TP yards, egg cars, and punch people.
What is Jamie’s secret to not getting beat up by the bullies at school?
He says comedy works most of the time.
Why is Uncle Frankie so proud of Jamie?
He stood up to a bully to help someone else
What is the one good thing about living with a family that never smiles.
They are the perfect test audience for Jamie’s jokes. If he can make them laugh, he can make anybody laugh.
Why does Jamie call the sand, sun, and surf of the beach the great equalizers?
Because even though there are different kinds of people at the beach, they all get along while they’re there.
Name two reasons Pierce and Gaynor thought Jamie would be good in Student Council.
He’s honest, says what he means, has guts, has an excellent sense of humor
Who’s the real demon at Jamie’s school?
Stevie Kosgrov is Long Beach’s Bully of the Year, 3 years running.
Why doesn’t Jamie like long pauses in talking or total quiet?
It gives him too much time to think and to realize how alone he sometimes feels.
Who is Jamie’s big brother from his adoptive family?
Stevie Kosgrov, the bully who punched him at school
What is Jamie’s horrible fear of the beach?
He worries about sinking on the beach. His wheelchair is only two- wheel drive. He would get stuck in the sand and keep sinking deeper and deeper.
Why is chapter 17 titled “The Biggest Loser”?
In the Student Council election, Jamie only got 3 votes out of 361 votes
Name two skills of bullies as described on page 22.
They can smell fear. They can smell sweat. They can pick up on involuntary toots
What does Uncle Frankie suggest that Jamie do?
He suggests that Jamie write down all his funny stories.
Describe Jamie’s bedroom.
It’s the garage made into a bedroom. It has a concrete floor with rugs to cover the oil stains. It stores the lawn mower, snow blower, Weedwacker, and other things. It’s cold. It’s also where Jamie keeps his joke books and notebooks.
Why does Jamie like to help out at his uncle’s restaurant on Saturdays?
He gets to try out his jokes on the customers.
Pierce and Gaynor are Jamie’s best friends at school. Describe both Boys.
Pierce - very smart, knows a lot of fun facts Gaynor - girl crazy, has a nose ring,
Jamie’s secret weapon didn’t work on Stevie. What happened after the upside down kid ran off?
Stevie punched Jamie in the gut and knocked over his wheelchair
Chapter 5 is all about the good stuff at Jamie’s school. Describe three good things about his school.
There’s chocolate milk in the cafeteria every day. Jamie has his two best buds at school. He likes the science lab because you can see the ocean and the beach from the window. He likes the frizzy-haired girl who’s in a couple of his classes.
Explain how Jamie gets ideas for the jokes he writes.
He picks a subject and then brainstorms every silly angle he can think of on the subject. He writes down everything no matter how silly and then tries to write a joke from it.
What did Uncle Frankie encourage Jamie to do?
He told Jamie that he should enter Funniest Kid Comic contest.
Explain how the title of this book became I Funny.
Mr. Burdzecki told him he was a funny boy and Jamie came back with “I funny?”. Mr. Burdzecki said yes, he was funny. So the chapter ended with Jamie saying “I funny” and that’s where the title of the book came from