The Pigman

John Conlan and Lorraine Jensen have to tell about something that just happened to them, about an experience too overwhelming to keep private.

The two high-school sophomores come from constricting, unhappy homes, and although life seems tolerable since they have found each other, there is still much to be desired. Unusual circumstances introduce them to a lonely old man with an awful secret. An intense friendship results, and together the three create a strange, unreal world out of their zaniness and laughter.

But the very energy which built this world soon works to destroy it, and John and Lorraine are left again with their own reality.

This perceptive novel has a fresh, startlingly unsentimental story to tell about two young people searching for a way out of emptiness.

Two high school sophomores tell of the tragic consequences of their friendship for a lonely man.

Notable Children's Books 1940–1970 (ALA)
Best of the Best Books (YA) 1966–1988 (ALA)
1969 Fanfare Honor List (The Horn Book)
Outstanding Children's Books of 1968 (NYT)
Best Children's Books of 1968 (Book World)

Join the millions of readers who have discovered The Pigman, the beloved, groundbreaking young adult classic from Paul Zindel, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds.

In The Pigman, what begins as a teenage prank soon becomes a timeless examination of grief, acceptance, and the transformative power of friendship. High-school sophomores John and Lorraine had no idea what they were starting when they made a prank phone call to a stranger named Angelo Pignati. Virtually overnight, they befriended the old man. But now Mr. Pignati is dead. And for John and Lorraine, the only way to find peace is to write down their friend's story—the true story of the Pigman.

Supports the Common Core State Standards