Creativity In Mikey's 'The Goonies'

Thomas Carpino Period 3, Sci Fi Mrs. Johnson
There’s a Goonie in All of Us
Do you believe a child’s imagination can be a guide to greatness? When we are young, creativity is what we all rely on to have fun. We didn’t need technology to enjoy ourselves; we could make our fun into whatever we wanted, however we wanted to do it. The Goonies is a novel by James Kahn; it was based on the story by Steven Spielberg
and on the screenplay by Chris Columbus. The publication date is June, 1985 and is 193 pages in length. The Main character is Michael Walsh (Mikey). He and his buddies were fooling around in their father’s attic and came across a map leading to treasure. When he was younger, his father would tell him stories of the fierce pirate, One-Eyed Willy, and knew his dad had a fascination for the pirate. Driven by the idea of adventure, Mikey was dedicated to use this map to find the treasure with his friends.
Mikey also had other reasons to pursue this quest; he was on the breaking point of losing his house.
He mentions in the book that he doesn’t know where to call home anymore and that this could be his chance to help his family. His friends that go with him on this journey are Clark Devereaux (Mouth), Lawrence Cohen (Chunk), Richard Wang (Data), Stephanie Steinbrenner (Steph), Andrea Carmichael (Andy), and his older brother Brandon Walsh (Brand). This adventure had them face a number of obstacles. Their main problem was they were running from the Fratelli family, who were all criminals. The Fratelli family consisted of Ma, Francis, and Jake Fratelli. They also have a brother named Lotney, otherwise known as Sloth, who was on the side of the
goonies.
The message of this book is to follow your imagination; Mikey and his friends are a perfect example that letting your mind follow its dreams can pay off in the end.
In my honest opinion I did not like this book and I do not recommend it. The story itself is magnificent but the fact that it is 100% based off of the movie makes it pointless to read. They could have thrown in more deadly obstacles to face and made it worth reading. Overall it had more weaknesses than strengths. Strengths I can give is that if you haven’t seen the movie, then the book could definitely give you exactly what you’ve missed out on. It is a great story and is more than your average adventure tale. Reading it really does make you feel like you were a kid again, running around and being creative.
The biggest weakness I can criticize on is that it’s a replica of the movie, this being the only reason why I don’t recommend it. If you’re one of the people that would rather read the book then see the film, than maybe this is something that could be for you. The way I see it is why waste your time when there’s nothing to look forward to. This book fits the description of the fantastic voyage Sci Fi topic. It’s your typical heroic adventure and explores new
places.
In the end a child’s imagination can guide him far beyond greatness. Following the unbelievable and pursuing the unimaginable can lead you to a whole new world of possibilities. The Goonies fits that description in every meaning of the word. The world we live in today is full of ordinary and nothing that stands out; we’re losing the special spark inside every one of us that makes us different. Reading this book has opened my eyes and now I see that we should be ourselves and make our own adventures. We should enjoy our lives and go out and do what we have always dreamed of and hoped for. You only live once, and I don’t think God put us here to sit around and do nothing. Let your imagination get the best of you, only then will you realize that there is a goonie in all of us.