Journey to Nowhere

In the spring of 1815, Remembrance "Mem" Nye and her family set off in a covered wagon from their farm in Connecticut to the western New York wilderness. Mem and her mother see it as a journey to nowhere since there won't be any houses or neighbors, just endless forest. Their journey is filled with the uncertain danger of wild animals, raging storms, and cruel strangers. When Mem is unexpectedly separated from her family, she must face every danger alone while hoping to find her family again.

Publishers Weekly

Migrating from Connecticut to upstate New York in 1815, 11-year-old Mem's family meets one near-fatal disaster after another. "The concept of hapless pioneers is deliciously intriguing," said PW. Ages 10-up. (Oct.) r

Mary Jane Auch has written a number of well-received novels, including Seven Long Years Until College and Kidnapping Kevin Kowalski. She has also written and illustrated Eggs Mark the Spot, Hen Lake, and other picture books.

The author was inspired to write a historical novel after learning of the summer of 1816, when snow fell in upstate New York in June and hard frosts killed the crops in July and August. As she began writing about the Nye family, who moved to New York State from Connecticut right before that fateful summer, she realized that she needed to start her story in Connecticut, where the Nyes began their journey. Thus was born the idea of writing a trilogy about the Nye family, starting with Journey to Nowhere.

Ms. Auch, the mother of two grown children lives with her husband in Ontario, New York, in the Genesee Country, where her novel takes place and where her ancestors settled in the early nineteenth century.