Runaways on the Inside Passage [Hardcover]

Joe Upton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2002 | Age Level: 11 and up | Grade Level: 6 and up

Young readers will thrill to this breathless story of courage and determination set in the Alaska wilderness. Abandoned by their mother in Seattle, thirteen-year-old twins Annie and David Ross enlist the help of Lars Hansen, an elderly commercial fisherman, to find their father in Alaska. In late November, when most fishing vessels are decommissioned for the winter, the trio sets out from Puget Sound in a forty-foot salmon troller for an eight-hundred-mile journey along the Inside Passage.

Pursued by the authorities as runaways, and with Lars's health failing, the three experience one adventure after another as they inch their way North, through terrifying winter storms and frightening encounters with strangers. In the process, Annie and David also make new, lasting friendships and kindle personal reserves of strength that they didn't know existed.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-9-David and Annie Ross, 13, have been abandoned again by their mother. Instead of facing another stay in a foster home, they decide to find their father, who lives in Alaska. After convincing his old friend Lars, an elderly fisherman, to let them crew with him to Sitka, the teens must dodge the authorities who are searching for them. They set off in November, when travel through the Inside Passage is fraught with danger, hoping to reach their dad by Christmas. Early in their voyage, Lars suffers a stroke and the twins navigate the angry waters alone while caring for him. The premise of this book never reaches fruition. Only the most interested reader will be able to slog through the unexplained maritime terminology and excessive description to reach the climax. ("It was an ominous time, the kind of afternoon when the sailor yearns for the most secure of harbors, a place where islands and arms of land enfold the entering vessel, and where the wind may blow all around with great force, yet the water remains almost unrippled.") The works of Gary Paulsen and Will Hobbs better serve fans of adventure stories.
Linda B. Zeilstra, Skokie Public Library, IL
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Upton has written about and naviagated the fishing grounds of New England, British Columbia, and Alaska.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 11 and up
  
• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Alaska Northwest Books (September 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0882405640
• ISBN-13: 978-0882405643
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,441,017 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mixed Feelings, April 1, 2009

By 

Alaskana - See all my reviews

This review is from: Runaways on the Inside Passage (Paperback)

There are some spoilers below!

I had some very mixed feelings about this book. I really enjoyed the nautical and adventure portions. This was obviously written by someone who has been there and done that. You felt as if you were really there. He had some excellent imagery yet I thought it needed a stronger climax with some real danger thrown in.

I did have problems with other aspects of the story. First of all, it felt like a book I would have read as a kid in the `60's or `70's (I kept looking at the copyright date to verify that it hadn't been written then!) but with some jarring modern day references. It was just an odd combination of old fashioned story with issues of today thrown in. For example, I found it hard to believe that every time the kids went someplace or turned on the radio they would hear news about themselves (made me think of Gilligan's Island!). They were runaways not in obvious danger. In real life, how often do we hear about kids like this much less recognize them yet everyone seemed to be aware of these two runaways.

Another problem I had was that with all the adults they ran into, not one of them made any serious attempt to stop them! I mean here we have two obviously inexperienced kids who barely knew an anchor from a steering wheel and an old man on his last legs and not one responsible adult thought it was a bad idea to let these people head out into some of the most treacherous waters around and in horrific weather!? Talk about irresponsible!

I also had issues with character development. In a story like this, you expect your main characters to grow and become stronger after their ordeal. In the beginning, Annie was the tough one, willing to take charge and go for it while David was more timid. By the end, it seemed like David had become the Man of the Boat doing all the tough stuff and Annie was spending more time in the galley. I felt she hadn't made much progress. I also was very put off by the part where Annie is nearly molested in the shower. OK, this girl has already said once that she didn't want to go back to foster care because some guy had made moves on her. She was fully aware of the kinds of things that could happen to young girls yet she had no problem going into a scuzzy bar full of sleazy, drunken men and ask to take a shower!? After her earlier experiences, her Creepy Guy alarms would have been going full blast and then to have her say later on that she just didn't think she had to worry about stuff like that, well of course she knew she had to! That's the reason she gave for not going back into foster care.

So, I enjoyed the adventure, the locale and nautical aspects of the book but found other parts in need of work. However if you want an old fashioned adventure but can look past the flaws, this isn't a bad story!

5.0 out of 5 stars A Winning Book for All Children!, February 22, 2007

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Runaways on the Inside Passage (Hardcover)

Have you ever wanted to run away to Alaska? Well that's what these kids did! In Runaways on the Inside Passage by Joe Upton 13 year-old twins David and Annie are abandoned by their mother and they decide to sail to Alaska in search of their father with help from Lars, an old family friend. What happens when Lars becomes ill and the Coast Guard goes after them? Will they make it to their father's home alive?

This is a great book for children of all ages! I highly recommend it. The way it is written it is like you are there on the boat deck looking out at the high seas. It is action-packed and makes almost any other book pale in comparison to this one. You learn a lot about sailing and the lengths people will go to in search of a family. If you read this book you will find out about love, kindness, and teamwork through the perspective of two 13 year olds.

This book is completely amazing!

1.0 out of 5 stars Inappropriate Reading for Ages 4 - 8, September 8, 2006

By 

Granny "Concerned Grandmother" (Farmers Branch, TX United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Runaways on the Inside Passage (Hardcover)

I bought this book for my [...] grandson but thankfully, I decided to read it before I gave it to him. I have discarded the book. There is an episode where a dirty old drunk with evil thoughts pulls off the towel of the teenage girl who just stepped out of the shower. This is totally inappropriate reading material for young readers. There are also two other similar references. The book should be pulled off book shelves.