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THE TRAIL — Review & Giveaway

rosihollinbeck

Thought for the Day:

“Art doesn’t have to do anything. It just has to be there for the fierce pleasure we take in doing it.”


~ Raymond Carver ~ 

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

We all want our books to be meaningful. HERE is a good post by Mary Kole on How to Write Meaningful Children’s Books.

We all work hard on our main characters, but it’s important for them to have friends, relatives, a support system around them that makes sense. HERE, on Writer Unboxed, is a great article by Jim Dempsey to help you Make Every Character Count.

I’m always interested in posts about writing dialogue. HERE is a great post from Edie Melson at The Write Conversation with Tips for Writing Good Dialogue.

The Super Bowsl wasn’t very super. Not even the ads were very good this year. Oh, well. At least the halftime show was not boring. ‘Nuff said. Every year, my daughter and I try to see as many Oscar-nominated films as possible. We have both been pretty busy, and the only one we have seen is Wicked. I decided last night I’d better get cracking and try to knock off a couple of the films that are free on streaming. I think I have movie whiplash after the two I chose. I saw Emelia Perez and Wallace and Grommet: Vengeance Most Fowl. Of course, I knew pretty much what I would be getting with the Wallace and Grommet movie, and I was not disappointed. It was just plain silly and fun. I hadn’t read anything about Emelia Perez, and, oh, what a surprise that was! It had some interesting performances, but I’d be surprised if it wins best picture. I won’t say much except that it is entirely unexpected. It’s sure not for kids, but it is an interesting piece of work. I read the book The Nickel Boys, and I’m not sure I want to see the film. The book was great, but the story is devastating. I’d like to see Sing Sing, A Complete Unknown, Anora, The Brutalist, and maybe a couple others, but mostly I hope baseball season starts soon.

A few weeks ago, I reviewed OFF THE MAP by Meika Hashimoto. (You can read that review HERE.) If you have read my blog for a while, you know I love a good survivor story. I checked to see if Hashimoto had written any other survivor stories, and I found THE TRAIL, which she had written a few years earlier. I liked it a lot.

Toby, 12, is hiking the Appalachian Trail. He left a note for Gran when he left and promised he would be back before school starts. Hiking the trail is the last thing to do on the list of Brave, Daring, Totally Awesome Things to Do that Toby and Lucas made. But now it’s just Toby. Lucas is gone and Toby has to do this one last thing on the list by himself. He has Lucas’s tent and the hiking boots Lucas gave him. He’s pretty sure he has enough money to buy the food he will need, but it is a long way to go, and Toby wasn’t the brave one. Lucas was. Toby isn’t sure he has what it takes, but he starts anyway. Along the way, Toby picks up a poor, scrawny dog someone must have abandoned. He names him Moose, and it’s nice for Toby to have a companion. He also meets a couple of older teenagers, Denver and Sean, who help him after he takes a fall. Denver is nice, but Sean is a jerk. They walk together off and on for parts of the trail and become unlikely friends. Toby also gets some help from people who work in the shelters, but it is a long and arduous journey, and Toby has to complete his own journey.

Meika Hashimoto knows how to write a survivor story that will capture young readers. The backstory adds an important layer to this story and really will keep those pages turning. Her writing is terrific, and her storytelling skills are great. She has one more survivor story on her list. I hope to get to that one soon.

I have a gently-read paperback of this book to give to one of you. All you need to do is be a follower (it’s free and easy — see the top, right corner of the post) with a US Address, and leave a comment. If you share the link to this post on social media, please let me know in your comment, and you will get an extra chance. And please don’t forget to check for other Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday posts at Greg Pattridge’s blog HERE.

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Published by rosihollinbeck

27 thoughts on “THE TRAIL — Review & Giveaway”

  2. Pingback: Marvelous Middle Grade Monday for 2/17/25 | Always in the Middle…

  3. I turned the Super Bowl off. I couldn’t watch it. This sounds like a cool survival story. I’ll let someone else win. I have a lot of books coming in the next few weeks.

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  4. I turned the Super Bowl off. I couldn’t watch it. This sounds like a cool survival story. I’ll let someone else win. I have a lot of books coming in the next few weeks.

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  6. I love finding excellent survivor stories and based on your reviews, this author is one of the best. I have this book on my wish list and can’t wait to read it. Thank you for sharing your copy with one of us. I shared this post on Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter.

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  7. Thankful for the holiday today that gave me a chance to visit your links. The Mary Kole one was very helpful. I’m a big fan of survival stories and somehow missed THE TRAIL when it was released. Not sure there would be a 12-year-old hiking the trail alone, but that plot point certainly adds more appeal for young readers. Thanks for being a part of MMGM this week.

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  8. I love survival stories too! This sounds amazing. My cousin’s son did a lot of through hiking and did the Appalachian trail, so the setting intrigues me. I also saw the new Wallace and Grommett. I didn’t know it was up for an Oscar. It was hilarious as always!

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  11. I’m generally a fan of “get out of your comfort zone” stories like this one. I especially think that’s an important lesson for children.

    I’ve mentioned before that I’m a year round sports fanatic, but this is the one dead period for me before baseball, March Madness, and the NBA playoffs begin. We’re already looking into Giants and A’s tickets. It’s hard to picture a professional team in the River Cats stadium, but I understand they’re adding extra seating.

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    1. This is a book kis will like and will learn important things. The River Cats stadium is intimate. I don’t know where they will add seats, but I’m sure they will find a way. Tickets are really expensive. Hope you can get to some games.Thanks for the comment and good luck in the drawing.

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  12. For authenticity’s sake, did the characters have trail names? That’s a tradition for thru-hikers on the AT. My husband’s cousins have hiked the trail twice, the second time with their 7 and 9-yr old. The second time it took them from Mar- early Sept, hiking north. It’s not for the faint of heart. And it would take a pretty special 12-yr-old to do it by themselves!

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    1. Some characters did have trail names. Toby, in all fairness, wasn’t hiking the entire trail, but a long section of it. I can’t imagine hiking the whole thing with young kids! Wow. Thanks for the comment. Good luck in the drawing.

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  13. I have walked that Trail! Just gonna say that hiking through the Berkshires in December was maybe not the smartest idea? (imagine a half inch layer of ice inside your boots that have spent the night inside your sleeping bag!) I started dreaming of hiking the AT when I was about … 12 – I’ll blame it on Jean Craighead George’s books. anyway, can’t wait to read this one!

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  15. This sounds a super story, I will have to add to my TBR as I still haven’t read a survival story for kids and you make them sound so good. Glad Toby found Moose (and I hope no 12 year old would ever do this! 🙂 ). Thanks for the recommendation!

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