The Middle of Somewhere [Paperback]

J.B. Cheaney (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 14, 2008 | Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up

VERONICA SPARKS IS hitting the road and she is going to shake the dust of her little town off her shoes and see the world!

Well, someday. For now, she’s hitting the road in an RV with her cantankerous grandfather and her hyperactive little brother. Ronnie’s grandfather is a wind prospector, and they are heading across Kansas in search of a good stiff breeze. Okay, so it’s not the trip of her dreams. But with her newly affirmatized attitude, Ronnie figures that traveling somewhere is better than traveling nowhere. That is, until her little brother manages to disappear into thin air.

On one weird, windy, wild ride across the prairie, Ronnie discovers that there are some things you just can’t plan for or seize control of—but that sometimes a little chaos is just what a girl needs.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Following her mother's emergency knee surgery, 12-year-old Ronnie Sparks becomes her brother's keeper. The task is daunting because 7-year-old Gee suffers from severe ADHD. In an effort to speed up her recovery, Mom arranges for her father to take the kids on a road trip. Pop reluctantly agrees, and they all set out for Kansas, helping Pop search for wind-power-generating sites. Ronnie quickly becomes a buffer between Pop and Gee, stuck in the impossible position of trying to contain her brother's outrageous behaviors so that Pop won't throw a tantrum and drive everyone home. Amusing chapter-heading quotations, taken from a self-help book Ronnie has just read, lighten the mood of the story, even as Ronnie's outlook on her personal situation continues to deteriorate. The main characters are particularly well drawn and believable, and readers will root for both children as they attempt to overcome the obstacles placed in front of them. Fans of Jack Gantos' Joey Pigza series are sure to appreciate Ronnie and Gee's excellent adventure. Kay Weisman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

“Fans of Jack Gantos’ Joey Pigza series are sure to appreciate Ronnie and Gee’s excellent adventure.”—Booklist

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Yearling; Reprint edition (October 14, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440421659
• ISBN-13: 978-0440421658
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 0.6 x 7.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #666,218 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Super Summer Read, July 2, 2007

By 

Julie B. Bryant (Bolivar, MO) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Middle of Somewhere (Hardcover)

I am a Children's Literature instructor at a University and have shared with my students other books by J.B. Cheaney. I have been anticipating this book since I knew of its planning. Now that I have read it, I can say I was not dissapointed! I thoroughly enjoyed reading this literary treasure! "The Middle of Somewhere" had me traveling with the family, laughing at their crazy antics, and enjoying where the journey took them both through the state of Kansas and through life. I think that lots of young students will be able to relate to Ronnie. I also think that teachers will find valuable teaching opportunities from mapping their route to writing truisms. It is a great read for the summer! I encourage you to get it and read it today!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Super Sized reading fun!, July 3, 2007

By 

Naomi G. Shaw "books 4 life" (Strafford, MO) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Middle of Somewhere (Hardcover)

J.B. Cheaney supersized my reading pleasure this summer with her latest book that includes something for everyone. Take an RV, throw in a cranky grandpa, an ADHD little brother, and a half grown girl(yearning to "Sieze the Way"), and your bound for adventure and misadventure. Kansas? That's right next door. I feel a road trip coming on. Thanks, Ms. Cheaney!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Funny and admirable--you'll want to read it again!, June 7, 2008

By 

Deborah Sandford "Marian the Librarian" (Madison, NJ, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Middle of Somewhere (Hardcover)

"None of this that I'm about to tell you would have happened if my mother hadn't found that squirrel in the toilet." Twelve year-old Veronica Sparks hooks the reader into her story--and wow! does she have a story to tell! Mom breaks her knee in the squirrel incident, becomes bedridden for a few months, and implores her father, "Pop", to take his two grandchildren with him for a few weeks (it is the start of summer vacation) in his brand new RV as he goes scouting for wind-power-generating sites, his new endeavor. Ronnie (Veronica) has just read "Sieze the Way: Ten Weeks to Supersize Your Life" and intends to broaden her horizons. Quotes from the book lead the chapters until Ronnie culls her own quotes from her experiences. Funny stuff! A cantankerous motorcycle-riding grandpa, a 7 year-old brother with full blown ADHD, a road trip across Kansas (and you thought Kansas was flat and dull..), a stowaway dog, and then the disappearance of the little boy and Pop's and Ronnie's scramble to find him, leave the reader with much admiration for this young woman-to-be who keeps her cool, sees situations for what they are, makes no judgments. Readers are satisfied, knowing in confidence that there is a little bit of Ronnie Sparks in them.