recommended for: 9-13 year olds, kids in need of some self confidence

I adored this book and read it many times when I was 11 & 12 years old. It's about siblings who get separated from their parents and with ingenuity and courage, find their way back home by themselves. Unfortunately, it's out of print now.

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I reread this book in April 2019 before having to give up the book. Giving up books will be as tough as I’d feared, I’m afraid. And I’m embarrassed that two of the books I’m now giving up are in such gross condition, made only slightly less embarrassing in that they were originally library books and I got them used, though I was one patron that read them frequently prior to buying them. I have a few books that I had new that are in not condition either so I have to assume I might be of the culprits for these books too. On the other hand, some of my books from childhood are in remarkably great condition.

Oh, wow. I read and reread this so many times at ages 11 & 12. I’d always thought I didn’t really know what vegetarianism was until I was around 17 but there is a great ethical vegetarian (maybe vegan!) character in this book. I hadn’t remembered her at all. Unfortunately, even though the veg*n was presented as a positive character, veg*nism was overall not presented in a positive way, though the author/characters seemed to be conflicted about issues around animals as food, killing animals, etc. and companion animals are presented in a very positive light.

To my surprise I’d forgotten about the dog too. Ditto the other animals.

I got the feeling he wrote it as a way to teach his children some lessons. It’s kind of annoying and it’s sort of sweet, but sort of upsetting too given what he says about his characters.

I have to say: Books should not go out of print if any readers want to read them, and they should be made available online if that’s the only way to read them, I’d read them that way. But between ILL and online sites, if a reader wants to read a particular OOP book, they should be able to do so, for free or for very low cost or for print on demand. ( )

This kind of reminds me of the Boxcar Children. The plot is similar: three kids, alone in the world, trying to make it on their own. Ashley (a girl), Brett (a boy), and Shane (a girl), age 10, 8 and 6 respectively, are on vacation when their parents leave the hotel one day and never come back. Fearful of being turned in to the "juvenile authorities," the children quietly slip away and begin the 600-mile trek home. On the way they face various challenges including injury and lack of food, pick up a trio of animal companions and encounter various adults who either help or hinder them.

Although it's pretty long compared to most children's books, I think kids age 10 or so would love this. All kids fantasize about being on their own without all those meddling grownups around, and the children's self-reliance is a great thing that even adults would admire. And of course there's the suspense factor: what's going to happen next on the road, and more to the point, where are their parents and what happened to them?

A definite win. ( )