You put your right foot in, you put your right foot out ... chances are you know the rest. But in Jerry Spinelli's latest book, the Hokey Pokey is much more than a children's song and dance. Hokey Pokey is the name of a magical universe where kids are in charge — no adults in sight. There are herds of bikes, endless cartoons, a cuddle station and dessert for lunch every day.
But one morning a boy named Jack wakes up and something is different. His bike is gone. His best buddies seem baby-ish. Even girls, which every boy in Hokey Pokey knows are gross, maybe don't seem so bad anymore. Off in the distance, Jack hears a train whistle. It's coming to take him away.
Spinelli, the Newbery Medal-winning author of Maniac Magee, Stargirl, Wringer and many other books for kids and teens, joins NPR's Rachel Martin to discuss his latest, bittersweet story about growing up and leaving childhood behind.