Ten Miles from Winnemucca

Publishers Weekly

After his stringy-haired stepbrother throws his belongings out of the second-floor window, the 16-year-old narrator runs away, takes a job at a burger joint and enrolls in school. His "quick take on life and his boundless resourcefulness will keep readers entertained," wrote PW. Ages 12-up. (Jan.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Children's Literature

Martin J. Miller, sixteen years old, has just moved away from Winnemucca, Nevada, the small town where he has lived his whole life. Expected to settle into his new Seattle home while his mother and stepfather honeymoon, Martin instead drives off in his jeep after discovering his possessions have been flung from a window by his spoiled stepbrother. By the time Martin reaches Red Rock, Idaho, he is out of money, so he sets up camp, gets a job and enrolls in the local high school, where he makes a couple of friends. He thinks often of his caring mother, and after a few weeks he returns to her and his new life in Seattle. Although some themes in the book will appeal to teens, the story itself is not much of a challenge for that readership. The protagonist, while likable, is not a strong enough character for teens to really latch onto. In the end, Martin seems to go home only because he realizes it was a mistake to leave, not because he has overcome something or affected change in some way. The plot could have been more complex, too. For instance, Martin often thinks of his best friend, Pete, in Winnemucca, but he never tries to contact him. The reader has the feeling that these memories are leading somewhere, but it never becomes a destination. Perhaps best for the reluctant teen reader. 2002, HarperCollins, $15.95 and $15.89. Ages 12 up. Reviewer:Jane Harrington

KLIATT

To quote from the review of the hardcover in KLIATT, March 2002: Martin gets in his jeep and heads back to Winnemucca, Nevada. Why? His new stepbrother has dumped all his clothes out of the window and Martin hates everything about life in Seattle now that his mother has remarried and is away on an extended honeymoon in Europe. On the way back to Winnemucca, Martin runs out of gas and money and starts camping out in the jeep in a hidden part of a canyon. He gets a job at a hamburger joint, enrolls as a junior in the local high school, and tells elaborate lies all around to maintain his independence. Through intelligence and wit, he manages to survive and learn a lot about himself for three months, when he then is ready to be reunited with his mother and new family. Pictured on the cover, against a stunning view of a canyon, are Martin and his new friend Dragon, a girl who is also a newcomer in town, shoplifts for excitement, and knows a lot about living with lies. Wyss tells this as an adventure, with a light touch. It is a story that is short and moves quickly. It is not meant to be realistic, though she does make the plot reasonably believable. But what teenager wouldn't love to fantasize about getting into a jeep and hitting the road, away from parents and difficult situations? Of course, Martin doesn't find this adventure idyllic; there is loneliness and hunger as a part of it, but he does realize he has the capability to take care of himself and make friends on his own. KLIATT Codes: JS—Recommended for junior and senior high school students. 2002, HarperTrophy, 154p., Ages 12 to 18.
—Claire Rosser

VOYA

Martin J. Miller's mother and new stepfather, Mr. Joe Wonderful, are on an extended honeymoon in Europe, leaving Martin with his new stepbrother, Burgess, and the housekeeper. When Burgess throws all of Martin's belongings out of the second story window, Martin packs everything into his red Jeep and leaves Seattle en route back to Winnemucca, Nevada, his home for sixteen years. Martin dislikes Seattle and misses his friends and the life he and his mom led in Winnemucca after his dad died when he was five years old. Martin, however, never makes it back to Winnemucca. Instead, he stops at Red Rock, Idaho, camps out in a canyon, lives in his Jeep, gets a part-time job, and registers for school. With the help of a few quirky friends, Martin eventually realizes that home is with the people you love. This short, funny story about a young man trying to find his place in life after his world is turned upside down is entertaining, but the characters and plot are never fully developed. Readers do not get to know Martin in the same way they knew Jake in an earlier novel by Wyss, Here at the Scenic-Vu Motel (Harper, 1988/VOYA April 1988). Nevertheless, teens in middle school and early high school will enjoy this humorous adventure of a teenage boy who runs away from home and for a time, lives successfully on his own. VOYA CODES: 3Q 3P M J (Readable without serious defects; Will appeal with pushing; Middle School, defined as grades 6 to 8; Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9). 2002, HarperCollins, 144p, $15.95. PLB $15.89. Ages 11 to 15. Reviewer: Linda Roberts SOURCE: VOYA, February 2002 (Vol. 24, No.6)

School Library Journal

Gr 6-9-Martin J. Miller, 16, had no complaints about his life in Winnemucca, NV, until his mother's remarriage to wealthy Mr. Joe Wonderful of Seattle brings unwelcome change. The couple leaves for a European honeymoon, and in short order Martin's belongings are jettisoned from the second-story window of Joe's house by his stringy-haired new stepbrother and his cronies. Martin loads his beloved red Jeep with his bike and belongings and hauls off down the road until hunger and a nearly empty gas tank land him in Red Rock, ID, a place as good as any other. Demonstrating fair ingenuity, he soon enrolls in school, secures a job slinging burgers, and lives in his Jeep, which he secrets on a back-canyon road. His unlikely new life includes a covey of little critters at his campsite as well as an unsolicited girlfriend, Diantha Dragon, a vision in black whose freewheeling style both repels and attracts him. But for all his success in achieving a marginal existence, thoughts of what and where home truly is tug at Martin, and he ultimately decides to return to Seattle. This is a pleasing, well-paced story with a sympathetic, resilient protagonist who has considerable reader appeal.-Sylvia V. Meisner, Greensboro Montessori School, NC Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

Stories of runaways and survival attract middle-grade readers nearly as well as a short format. This boasts the added attractions of solid, sometimes poetic writing, a great, self-deprecating sense of humor, and a zippy pace that will keep readers interested. Sixteen-year-old Martin Miller has grown up with his widowed Mom Miller in Winnemucca, Nevada. Martin feels entirely comfortable there and resists leaving when his mother marries a wealthy man from Seattle. Just after the wedding, as his Mom and new stepfather leave for an extended European honeymoon, Martin escapes in his Jeep. His gas money takes him as far as Red Rock, Idaho, where he sets up residence in an illegal campsite, hiding his Jeep from the road. He quickly finds a job and enrolls in the local high school. Except for running away, Martin behaves with real responsibility, working, studying, and caring for the "critters" that surround his Jeep. His new girlfriend, however, shoplifts, steals, and eventually reveals Martin's secret camp. Wyss (A Stranger Here, 1993, etc.) deftly keeps her writing light and her narrative moving, as she leads readers (and Martin) into realizing that his choices reflect his feelings about his mother far more than about leaving Winnemucca. With truly readable style, she balances plot and language in an entirely plausible adventure into growing up that should have wide appeal. (Fiction. 11-14)