Good historical fiction, but Murphy is definitely at his best with nonfiction. ( )

Young girl's family must make it up the canal to get bonus for delivery of goods, must meet deadline to avoid losing barge. Protagonist is 12 year old girl who finds courage to help ill mother.Mysterious stranger helps out family because god told him to. Other than this obvious christian fiction bend, excellent read and because of author's experience writing non-fiction (silbert nominee, newbery nominee) well researched. Include historical background information. Late 19th century - 1878 - post civil war. ( )

Desperate Journey by Jim Murphy - I picked this one up because the Erie Canal is a featured character in the story, and because the girl on the cover looks a little like my great-niece Mariesa, and I was not disappointed. I give a lot of talks on the Erie Canal as part of my job, and many of those talks are to kids, so imagine my delight at finding a book that tells the story of 12-year old Maggie Haggerty and her family of canawlers. Maggie lives a much different life than other girls her age, spending all her time walking the Erie and guiding the mules that pull her father's boat. She's used to the hard life on the canal, but longs for a home on land, a place where she'll fit in and be able to leave the "dirty canal girl" insults behind. When her father is jailed for fighting and with her mother feeling poorly, Maggie takes over the responsibility of delivering the load of stoves and plows on their boat to Buffalo. There are tons of local references in this book that will resonate with young readers -- I especially liked Maggie's memory of a beautiful white horse she saw galloping in a field when they were stopped just outside of Spencerport. Beautiful writing, gripping story. ( )

Jim Murphy is a nonfiction writer, and it shows. Facts and history are on show here, but, even so, the book is engaging, particularly to readers in New York State who live near the Erie Canal. ( )