- Published: New York : Viking, 2011.
- Year Published: 2011
- Description: 324 p. ; 22 cm.
- Language: English
- Format: Book
ISBN/Standard Number
- 9780670022816
- 0670022810
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Where To Find It
Call number: Fiction
Available Copies: Downtown 1st Floor, Pittsfield Adult, Traverwood Adult, West Adult
Additional Details
Lucy Hull, a young children's librarian in Hannibal, Missouri, finds herself both a kidnapper and kidnapped when her favorite patron, ten- year-old Ian Drake, runs away from home. The precocious Ian is addicted to reading, but needs Lucy's help to smuggle books past his overbearing mother, who has enrolled Ian in weekly antigay classes with celebrity Pastor Bob. Lucy stumbles into a moral dilemma when she finds Ian camped out in the library after hours with a knapsack of provisions and an escape plan. Desperate to save him from Pastor Bob and the Drakes, Lucy allows herself to be hijacked by Ian. The odd pair embarks on a crazy road trip from Missouri to Vermont, with ferrets, an inconvenient boyfriend, and upsetting family history thrown in their path. But is it just Ian who is running away? Who is the man who seems to be on their tail? And should Lucy be trying to save a boy from his own parents?
Reviews & Summaries
Community Reviews
Recommended for Liberal Book-Lovers
This is an interesting and intelligent novel about a children's librarian and a kid who wants nothing more than to read all the books his conservative family - especially his high-strung, unpleasant mother - forbids. Also, the parents are sending him to a Pastor Jim Bob for anti-gay class.
Anyway, the allusions to all kinds of classic children's books in this book (including The Borrowers ) are wonderful. The story is really interesting, but I wanted to smack the protagonist a couple times. The ending made up for my frustration with her, though
Anyway, the allusions to all kinds of classic children's books in this book (including The Borrowers ) are wonderful. The story is really interesting, but I wanted to smack the protagonist a couple times. The ending made up for my frustration with her, though
Fun
If you like libraries/librarians/books (and who doesn't?)
you should check this out.
you should check this out.
Meh
This is one of those highly anticipated summer books but I thought it fell flat. There's no denying that Makkai's writing is excellent, but her main charecter Lucy drove me crazy. She was whiny and self-centered to a point that completely distracted me from the writing. I also found the plot to be so nonsensical as to lose me completely.
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