Be Not Far from Me

January 1, 2020

Gr 10 Up-Seventeen-year-old Ashley is comfortable in the Tennessee wilderness, having grown up camping, hiking, and hunting in the Smokies. Her mother left when she was young, and while her father could not always afford to buy food or clothes, he did teach her survival skills. In Ashley's own words, she's on everyone's apocalypse-survival team. One summer night, Ashley and her friends hike into the wilderness to throw a party deep in the Smokies. In their remote small town, friendships are based more on geography than common interests, and Ashley quickly becomes annoyed by and insecure about the actions of some of the people at the party. When she stumbles upon her boyfriend having sex with his ex-girlfriend in the woods, Ashley takes off running. Drunk, devastated, and shoeless, Ashley sustains a serious injury before passing out. When she wakes, she realizes that she is lost in the wilderness without any supplies, and it will be days before anyone realizes that she's in trouble. She begins the journey to find her way home, contending with infection, starvation, thirst, and wild animals along the way. McGinnis is known for writing tough female protagonists and gritty realism, and she holds nothing back in this latest novel. Ashley is angry, vulnerable, smart, and compelling, and her journey is marked by setbacks, terror, and plenty of gross-out moments. VERDICT This captivating, fast-paced novel is Hatchet for an older crowd. Highly recommended where adventure and survival fiction are popular.-Liz Overberg, Zionsville Community High School, IN

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2020
A Tennessee teen must put her wilderness survival skills to the ultimate test after becoming separated from her friends during a camping trip in the Smoky Mountains. Seventeen-year-old cross-country star Ashley Hawkins and her friends Meredith and Kavita are looking forward to a night of camping and drinking beer with classmates along the Appalachian Trail. Ashley wants to spend time with her boyfriend, Duke, but when his ex, Natalie, shows up, Ashley is less than thrilled. When she catches them together later that night, Ashley punches Duke in the face and flees headlong into disaster: A boulder crushes part of her foot, and to her horror, she soon realizes that she's far from camp and very much alone. In the grueling days that follow, with infection setting in and no supplies at hand, Ashley battles hunger and the elements while reflecting on her life, from her mother's abandonment to her underprivileged upbringing, as well as on a young man who disappeared in these very woods two years ago. McGinnis' (Heroine, 2019, etc.) visceral and emotional tale features a strong, stubborn, and alarmingly capable protagonist with unwavering respect for the natural world, and if a few twists rely a bit too much on coincidence, readers will likely be too invested in Ashley's fate to mind. All major characters seem to be white except Indian American Kavita, the only student of color at their school.Impossible to put down. (Fiction. 13-18)

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December 15, 2019
Grades 8-11 Ashley is more than comfortable in the remote outdoor landscapes near her home in the Smoky Mountains. She's smart, aware, prepared, and completely mindful of the cruel power of nature. But at a drunken campout with friends, she discovers her boyfriend with another girl, and her emotions get the better of her. She bolts from the safety of camp?barefoot, in the middle of the night, without anything but the clothes on her back. When she wakes, she realizes that she is badly injured, far from the path, and utterly lost. What follows is a painful, dangerous, powerful journey back home, wherein she discovers previously untapped reserves of strength and self-preservation. Recalling the advice of a camp counselor she idolized who has gone missing, Ashley slowly makes her way through the brush, struggling against hunger, cold, loneliness, regret, lack of shelter, and a potentially lethal infection on her bare foot. A harrowing and life-affirming journey of transformation from the edgy imaginings of McGinnis (Heroine, 2019).(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)