Is it hard to read?
No, Max tells the story in direct, conversational language, and the linear story moves briskly. Kevin’s extravagant vocabulary adds wordplay, but the narration stays accessible.
Fiction · Novel · Literary Fiction · Children's
Freak the Mighty
Reading facts
✓ Checked- Reading effort
- 20 / 100Light
- Length
- 192 pagesScholastic Paperbacks · 2001
- Reading time
- 3 h 45 minat 50 pages an hour ·
- Pace
- Brisk
- Emotional intensity
- 4 / 5
About 3 h 45 min · at 30 minutes a day, about 8 days
Estimated from the page count of this edition. Dense books can take longer than the estimate.
About the book
Living with his grandparents in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Maxwell Kane struggles with reading and with people's fear that he resembles his imprisoned father. His new neighbor Kevin uses crutches, loves King Arthur and commands a vocabulary Max can barely follow. Perched on Max's shoulders, Kevin turns their neighborhood outings into quests, and together they call themselves Freak the Mighty.
Reader notes
Max tells the story in blunt, often funny language, punctuated by Kevin's extravagant words and ideas. The middle-grade novel is accessible and unsentimental about disability and exclusion, but its friendship story also involves serious family abuse and violence.
How it reads
- Writing style
- Conversational · Direct · Spare
- Tone
- Hopeful · Melancholic · Tense · Warm
- Structure
- Linear
- Driven by
- Character · Relationships · Voice
- Point of view
- First person
- Setting
- Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Reading complexity
- Writing
- 2 / 5
- Ideas
- 2 / 5
- Structure
- 2 / 5
- Background knowledge
- 1 / 5
About this profile
Collected’s assessment, not reader ratings. Complexity runs from 1 (least demanding) to 5 (most demanding).
- Writing
- How much attention the sentences and language require.
- Ideas
- How much interpretation or abstract reasoning the book asks of you.
- Structure
- How much you need to keep track of speakers, timelines and connections.
- Background knowledge
- Prior knowledge needed to follow the book, beyond what it explains.
- Emotional intensity
- Emotional pressure, from gentle (1) to intense (5). Separate from difficulty.
Themes
- Belonging
- Coming of age
- Family
- Friendship
- Identity
- Trauma
Content notes
- Violence
- Strong
- Sexual content
- None
- Swearing
- None
- Substance use
- Mild
- Abuse
- Strong
- Self-harm or suicide
- None
Series and reading order
Freak the Mighty
- 1Freak the Mighty · This book · 1993
- 2Max the Mighty · 1998
Questions readers ask
What serious content should I expect?
Strong family abuse and violence are central concerns alongside the friendship story. Max also struggles with people’s fear that he resembles his imprisoned father, and the story addresses disability and exclusion without sentimentality.
Does it feel cheerful or sad?
The friendship between Max and Kevin brings warmth, hope and often funny narration, while family trauma gives the story a tense, melancholic side. Their neighborhood quests sit alongside emotionally serious struggles with belonging and identity.
What age group is it for?
It is a middle-grade novel with accessible prose and a focus on friendship, family and belonging. The serious family abuse and violence make it an emotionally demanding choice despite the straightforward storytelling.
How long is it?
About 192 pages in the Scholastic Paperbacks 2001 edition.
Which edition is shown here?
Scholastic Paperbacks · 2001 · Paperback. ISBN 9780439286060.
What is the order of books in Freak the Mighty?
1. Freak the Mighty; 2. Max the Mighty.
How long does it take to read Freak the Mighty?
About 3 hours 45 minutes at 50 pages an hour, based on the 192-page Scholastic Paperbacks edition. Dense books can take longer.
About the author
Rodman Philbrick
W. R. Philbrick writes direct, conversational fiction about young people learning to see themselves beyond the judgments imposed on them. His stories place friendship and loyalty under pressure, using danger to reveal character and test independence. In Freak the Mighty, Maxwell Kane’s bond with the brilliant, physically disabled Kevin Avery challenges the fear and bullying surrounding both boys. Max the Mighty returns to Maxwell without Kevin beside him; as Max protects a younger girl on a dangerous journey west, he must rely on his own courage and judgment.
If you liked this
Edition and details
- Publisher
- Scholastic Paperbacks
- Publication year
- 2001
- Format
- Paperback
- Pages
- 192
- ISBN
- 9780439286060
- Edition language
- English
- Original language
- English
- First published
- 1993
- Genres and form
- Fiction · Novel · Literary Fiction · Children's · Young Adult · Literary fiction · Coming of age · Contemporary literary
- Editions
- 16
- Languages
- 2 (English, Unspecified)