Travis Hawk, a 17-year-old from the Passamaquoddy Nation, needs to escape. Ever since his mom died, he's been traveling with his Iraq vet father across the U.S., and though his dad is looking for work, he spends more time drinking and taking his frustrations out on Travis. After several months in a Seattle homeless shelter, Travis decides he's had enough, and with $82 and a fire-making kit, he skips town and makes his way eastward, aiming for his grandparents' place in Maine. On the road, Travis meets lots of helpful people, whose kindhearted generosity bolsters him on his journey. Bruchac has a powerful, succinct way with words in this novel, and the low page count and direct language makes it well suited for reluctant readers. Though some of his chance meetings on the road seem a bit too coincidental at times, Travis is nonetheless an easy hero to root for. Filled with compassion, suspense, and rich characters, Bruchac's narrative keeps the pages of this brief novel turning.

Gr 6 Up-Travis Hawk is three months away from his 18th birthday and adulthood. But three months is too long to stay with his alcoholic father and the bullies at the Seattle homeless shelter where they live. So Travis sets off across the country to his childhood home in Maine, taking buses and hitching rides, drawing on the advice of his Passamaquoddy grandparents to avoid notice, survive the elements, and find strength in the world around him. A narrow escape from local thugs in Missoula notwithstanding, Travis's journey is one of generous strangers sharing life lessons in exchange for company on a long drive or a few hours of work. A poet leaves him a verse and a $20 bill, a cowboy and his sister open up their home, and a kind police officer finds him a job with an elderly Syrian restaurateur and a ride with a wealthy senator. Travis and his father are quietly complex characters. The teen loves his dad in spite of the alcoholism, and his father, an Iraq War veteran, clearly has strong ties to his Native heritage that he has proudly passed on to his son, but employment instability has taken its toll on his ability to be the parent Travis needs. Written for a teen audience but at a lower reading level, this work is fast-paced and offers plenty of action without sacrificing depth and authentic emotional experiences. VERDICT A good choice for middle and high school collections in need of low-level reads that are well written, engaging, and uplifting. Chelsea Couillard-Smith, Hennepin County Library, MN