A Map of Nowhere [Audiobook] [Audio Cassette]

Gillian Cross (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1994

Nick is surprised when he finds a strange wallet in his school bag. And when he sees the strange note in it, which seems to belong to some kind of adventure game, he is even more intrigued. The wallet belongs to Joseph Fisher, and although he and Nick aren't friends, Nick is determined to join in with this mysterious game. When his brother's gang send him off to Joseph's house to return the wallet, Nick finally becomes involved with Joseph and his eerie game. But why is his brother so keen for the two of them to become friends? And does Nick really want to become part of his gang?

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Nick has two great passions in life: he loves to play fantasy games and he yearns to become a part of his brother Terry's motorcycle gang. The chance to indulge both passions comes when he finds a classmate's wallet. The wallet belongs to Joseph Fisher, a quiet boy who is deeply involved in a fantasy game created by his older sister Ruth. Although Joseph and Ruth are different from anyone Nick has ever known, he is soon engrossed in the game they play. But Nick is caught up in another game as well: his brother wants him to learn a few important facts about the shop that Joseph's family runs. Although at first he is able to pretend that it is all just a game, Nick soon admits to himself that he is helping Terry's gang with their plans to rob the Fishers' store. As the two games hurtle towards a head-on collision, Nick makes some crucial decisions about the way he wants to lead his life. A flawless plot and impeccable pacing make this novel as suspenseful as it is thought-provoking. It's another original offering from one of Britain's most versatile and talented authors. Ages 9-12.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

To Joseph Fisher and his older sister Ruth, the game (a form of dungeons and dragons) is rehearsal for tough, conscientious choices in real life; to Nick, when he first joins them in an episode of "Jezebel," real life is just another game where dirty tricks are the accepted norm. Nick's brother Terry, member of a rough motorcycle gang, has set up Nick's visits to the Fishers' remote home and shop to get information for a burglary. Unaware of this plan, Nick agrees to play Jezebel - although he is at first contemptuous when the dice decree that his character will lack strength and bravery while excelling in faith and virtue. But Ruth gives the game such drama and intensity that he is caught up in it, becoming - though he doesn't himself realize it - an admirer of the Fishers' care for what is right, especially as demonstrated in their moral standards for even their little children; in contrast, Nick's parents deal with problems (like Terry's illegal activities) by pretending they don't exist. Still, lured by Terry's long-revered gang, Nick betrays his new friends and is present when the shop is burned. Joseph is also there; and in the events that follow, Ruth uses Jezebel to lead both boys to responsible decisions concerning the roles they have played. Again, as in Roscoe's Leap (1987), Cross has written a tightly plotted, highly dramatic novel exploring family relationships and the meaning of responsibility; here, the fact that the people involved are otherwise ordinary lends immediacy to the extraordinary events. Spellbinding. (Kirkus Reviews) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Chivers Audio Books (May 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0745124267
• ISBN-13: 978-0745124261
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,808,379 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars A Map of Nowhere, April 12, 2007

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Map of Nowhere (Paperback)

by Gillan Cross

A Map of Nowhere!!!

A Map of Nowhere is a book about a kid named Nick who found a wallet. He doesn't know what to do with it. I would not recommend it to anybody. Unless you want too. This book is not a very good book. A kid named Nick found a wallet in his bag. It was not his. It had an ID in it. It belonged to Joseph Fisher. Nick found a piece of paper in the wallet. It looked like a map. Kind of like a map of nowhere!!!
My story takes place at nicks school. Their school is really big. Then the setting travels to a magical place. The magical place does not have a name. Nick and Joseph use the map that Nick found in Joseph's wallet to get there. In the magical place, there were flying people. The flying place was really big. There were lots and lots of trees. That's where Joseph found his dwarf. Right in front of a really big tree, and Joseph showed Nick that that's where he found it!!!
All and all I think this book was ok. A map of nowhere was really confusing to me. Because I could not understand what they were talking about for some of the book. Other than that I think the book was ok.

5.0 out of 5 stars Best of YA fiction, October 16, 2005

By 

Arlan Purdy (United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Map of Nowhere (Library Binding)

Some of the other reviews (including the Amazon Editorial) will give away a little too much of the plot. But even if you've had the whole plot given away on you, I'd still recommend this book.

This "children's" book equals many "adult" books in its level of nuanced insight into human nature and emotional enagement of the reader. I've re-read this book a couple of times and I don't think I've ever gone to bed before finishing it, no matter how late I pick it up. It captures the basic moral quandry of life: being attracted to the lives of "bad" people, repulsed by the sanctimoniousness of "good" people, and yet being uncomfortable with what it fully means to have fun with the "bad" crowd. Compare to S. E. Hinton's "Outsiders."

This is one of those books which can reach beyond a narrow age range. You might find it a little too gritty for children under ten (although it is not explicit), but in general I'd consider it a good choice for anyone who isn't ashamed to read literature that's aimed at children.

4.0 out of 5 stars Decent and interesting story, January 14, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: A Map of Nowhere (Library Binding)

This is a fictional book and told by one of the main characters in the story, Nick Miller. Therefore, it is written in first person.

Nick is a teenage boy of, in my opinion, the age of 15-16. He is a normal school boy who enjoys messing around with his friends and particularly likes any games which involve adventure or any kind of role-playing activities. He always wants to be `as cool as' his elder brother and his mates. When the author is making Nick talk, for example, she uses "I dunno"; instead of "I do not know".

Another main character is another teenage Fifth Former named Joseph Fisher. He is more of a loner, but also has lots of interest in games. He appears to be a good, honest boy, who does things such as playing and bathing his younger brother. He is also quite practical like, for example, mending his bike and cooking dinner for everyone.

A minor character in the story is Terry; he is the elder brother of Nick and belongs to a biker gang. He thinks it is cool to be rude and aggressive. He definitely deals in illegal activities such as robbing shops.

Another minor character in the story is the girlfriend of Terry, Donna. She has a sharp-sounding sarcastic voice and has her own motorbike. She laughs rudely at what other people say in a `barking' sort of way. She seems as if she is angry with life.

The third minor character is Ruth, Joseph's elder sister. She is intelligent, quiet and softly-spoken and was always say "Yes", instead of "Yeah" in the book. Much like the rest of her family, she is quite religious.

The Fisher family are very poor but honest and the Millar family have different morals. For example, the parents know that Terry is probably a thief but they do not want to admit it to themselves.

On the night of the raid of Joe's family's shop the family are all supposed to be out at Granny's house and because Nick gave the gang the information they wanted he was allowed to ride behind one of the bikers. The bikers took the money and wrecked the store but they left Nick behind hiding in the shop. He was amazed to see Joe setting light to the shop and could not believe he would do such a thing.

At the end of the story, Nick realised he has been set up all along by Joe and Ruth. They wanted their parents to get the insurance money from the burning down of the shop and to blame the fire on Nick's brother's gang. Eventually, everybody does the right thing by owning up about their part of the story.

In my opinion, I thoroughly enjoyed this book as I always wanted to know what was going to happen next. Because of the fact that the book is set in the present day, it was easy for me to understand the setting and relate to the boys as they were similar ages to me. It is very well written; therefore I felt that I `knew' the boys quite well and I thought it made you think about the things that are right and wrong in the world today. I definitely prefer this type of book as it is not fantasy but about real life issues. Because the book has lots of dialogue, it is quite like imagining conversations between real people going on.

Sometimes you can actually hear how the people would be talking to each other in my head. This helps the flow of the book and so although it was reasonably long book you could read it fairly easily.

The language is also not complicated but you have to think quite hard as to what is happening as the plot is complicated. Sometimes you have to re-read paragraphs just to make sure you understand what has happened.

I think that the writer has also put the boys in different places on purpose. Joe lives out on the marshes in the country, whereas Nick lives in town. I think the author wanted me to think that towns are worse places to live in with more `crime' than in the better countryside with kinder people.

The book also deals with a lot of different loyalties. For example, Joe and Ruth would like to help their parents all the time.

Nick and Joe show loyalty to each other, but also, Joe wants to be loyal to Terry, his brother. Terry also tries to be as loyal as he can to his gang and his girlfriend.

Some of the best parts of the book are when the boys and Ruth are carrying out their role-playing games in secret. I understand that they are only acting, but the way the game is described is often `gripping' and you do not know what they are going to do next. The atmosphere in these parts is very tense.

The most dramatic and exciting part in the book is when Nick watches, from his hiding place, Joseph trying to set light to his own shop by flinging some matches at some paraffin and running away. The matches fizzled out and so Nick set light to the paraffin, to finish the job that Joe started.

Because of the fact that this book is written in the present day, it does raise a lot of issues about good and bad parents and how they bring up different children in their families. Therefore, I think this is quite a moral book, which makes me think about the lives of other families.

I recommend this book to any teenage boy or girl who enjoys real-life drama because although it is quite easy to read, one has to think about what is happening all the time. This makes the book very `gripping' indeed.

Final Score: (/10) 7.5