There's a Girl in my Hammerlock

There’s a Girl in my Hammerlock (1991) is a young adult novel by Jerry Spinelli, a veteran author of books for children and young adults. He won the Newbery Award in 1990 for Maniac Magee, and his 1997 book, Wringer, was a Newbery honor book. There’s a Girl in my Hammerlock is a story about gender roles and what happens when young women defy them.

At the beginning of the school year, middle-schooler Maisie Potter tries out for the cheerleading team but doesn’t make the cut. Since she has always been fairly athletic, she asks her teacher, Mrs. Strickland, if there has been a mistake. Mrs. Strickland assures her that there was no mistake—she was not good enough for the cheerleading squad. Maisie suspects it might be because she is taller, bigger, and not as traditionally feminine as some of the other girls.

Maisie is generally not interested in boys, until a classmate, Eric Delong, smiles at her. She quickly develops a crush on Eric but isn’t sure how to talk to him. However, a popular girl, Liz Lampley, also has designs on Eric. To make things worse, feminine and dainty Liz made the cheerleading squad that Maisie wanted to be on. She uses the opportunity to brag to Maisie that she will be able to cheer for Eric while he is playing football.



Maisie decides that she has to do something drastic to get close to Eric. When she learns that he is trying out for the wrestling team, she hatches a plan to try out for the all-boy team as well. Her best friend Holly does not support her decision, warning her that people will make fun of her. When she arrives at tryouts, the boys trying out are made uncomfortable by her presence. The coach warns her that he doesn’t want her to join the team, but allows her to try out all the same.

Maisie’s brother warns her not to try out, but Maisie ignores him, going ahead with her plan. Mr. Capelli warns her that she won’t receive any special treatment and there’s a chance she will get hurt. He insists on talking to Maisie’s parents before allowing her to attend tryouts. Maisie’s mother supports her decision, encouraging her to pursue wrestling if she thinks it’s something she’ll enjoy. Maisie’s little sister, T.K., and T.K.’s friend Tank also see Maisie as something of a hero.

To everyone’s surprise, Maisie does very well at tryouts, beating out a number of boys. Impressed, Mr. Capelli agrees to make her a full-fledged member of the team. After she makes the team, Maisie faces derision from her classmates. Some of them call her a boy and whisper about how she shouldn’t have tried out for the team. None of the boys on the team wants to wrestle her and they have to be forced by Mr. Capelli to engage her. Holly, embarrassed to be seen with Maisie, ditches her to hang out with Liz.



Even Eric does not seem to like having Maisie on the team. However, he soon begins to warm up to her a bit. Maisie challenges him to a basketball match one day after school and beats him on the court. She is worried that Eric will not want to date someone who consistently beats him, but Eric appreciates that she doesn’t hold back when she’s around him. They go on a date and start to get close, but they decide that it’s too awkward, and they prefer to remain teammates.

Maisie and the rest of the team continue training under Mr. Capelli. A lesson about control points, such as those in the knees, elbow, and groin, is especially awkward for the wrestlers, but Mr. Capelli insists that they see each other as wrestlers instead of as girls and boys. As Maisie continues to improve and beats several of her fellow wrestlers in trial matches, she begins to earn the respect of the boys on her team.

The team begins to wrestle teams from other schools. Most of the boys are shocked to see Maisie on the team, often bullying her. However, Maisie quickly becomes one of the best wrestlers on the team, winning numerous victories over other teams. At the end of the book, she leads her team to the district championship and gets her picture in the school paper.