Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Maniac Magee, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Myth, Reality, and Heroism
Racism
Love, Loss, and Home
Human Dignity, Connection, and Community
Summary
Analysis
During Maniac’s second night in the Valley Forge cabin, he hears voices—little kids’ voices. The next morning, he drags himself out into the cold and peeks into the neighboring cabin. Two little boys, one with a missing tooth and the other with a screechy voice, stare back at him. They inform Maniac that they’re running away to Mexico. Maniac hides a smile at this and explains that Mexico is pretty far away. The kids show him the bag of candy, cupcakes, and even butterscotch Krimpets they’ve brought along for provisions.
True to his character, the only thing that can jolt Maniac out of his surrender to grief and death is the possibility that someone else needs him—in this case, two little runaway kids. In keeping with the story’s theme of community, connection with other people is a big part of what makes life worth living.
Themes
The kids reveal that they’re Piper and Russell, from Two Mills. Maniac tells them that they’ve won a large pizza from Cobble’s Corner, and that if they walk back to Two Mills with him, he’ll show them a shortcut to Mexico. After polishing off their pizza, the boys agree to spend the night at their house before trying again for Mexico. As they leave Cobble’s, Giant John McNab suddenly stomps toward them. The little boys cling to Maniac as McNab demands, “So what’re you doing with my little brothers?”
Without even thinking about it, Maniac commits himself to making sure of the little boys’ safety, showing again that he’s oriented toward seeing and answering the needs of other people. What he doesn’t anticipate is that the boys will entangle him in the tensions of Two Mills once again.
Themes
