At the onset of the Great Depression of the '30s, thirteen- year-old Bucky Ellis overhears two men talking at his mother's burial service and learns she died from a self-inflicted abortion with a knitting needle. He also hears their opinion that his father should "kick him out, as he's just another mouth to feed and is old enough to be out on his own." His perception clouded by grief, and motivated by his desire to do the right thing, Bucky leaves home and joins a quarter of a million teenagers riding the rails in search of a better life. Bucky becomes fast friends with "K.O.," the son of a Negro prizefighter whose career had been ruined by an unscrupulous manager. Together they face hardship, homelessness, near starvation and targeted abuse from "Crusher," an infamous railroad detective whose face is disfigured as a result of a skirmish with Bucky. In seeking vengeance, Crusher retaliates as the psychotic, obsessive stalker of Bucky, seeking not to kill, but to "ruin" him wherever he goes. In relentless pursuit, he infl icts chilling and punitive acts against his prey to the story's end, when the two meet each other for a final confrontation.
The Boxcar Kid
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle.
Learn more
FREE Two-Day Shipping for Students. Learn more |
| |||||||||||||||
Book Description
Special Offers and Product Promotions
- Buy $50 in qualifying physical textbooks, get $5 in Amazon MP3 Credit. Here's how (restrictions apply)
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Boxcar Kid,
This review is from: The Boxcar Kid (Hardcover)
Boxcar Kid gave me an inside look into the life of a 30s depression era boy and his adventures while riding the rails. Dick Miller did a superb job portraying Bucky, and gave me insight to a before-my-time world. An easy read and fast paced piece of writing, I would recommend it to anyone, but especially young people in their teen years.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Box Car Kid,
By
This review is from: The Boxcar Kid (Hardcover)
I am about half way through at this point. Lots of interesting experiences told in a readable manner. I Like it so far. Authors brother is a neighbor.
5.0 out of 5 stars
teenage adventure,
By
This review is from: The Boxcar Kid (Hardcover)
If one would switch the boxcar for a river boat, this book is reminiscent of Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn. Well written and quite entertaining. It exposes the thought processes of the teenage decision making, especially in earlier and simpler times. Dick Miller is a master of the vernacular. A fun read!
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
