Runaway
by Wendelin Draanen
- Percentage of approved critics who have given this book a positive review.
Critic Rating
69%
Critic Reviews: 18
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- User rating from iDreamBooks & iTunes
Reader Rating
97%
Reader Ratings: 71
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Synopsis
"It's a cold, hard, cruel fact that my mother loved heroin more than she loved me." Holly is in her fifth foster home in two years and she's had enough. She's run away before and always been caught quickly. But she's older and wiser now--she's twelve--and this time she gets away clean. Through tough and tender and angry and funny journal entries, Holly spills out her story. We travel with her across the country--hopping trains, scamming food, sleeping in... more
About Wendelin Draanen
Published: April 10, 2012 by Random House
Genre: Young Adult, Literature & Fiction. Fiction. 256 pages
- All Critics: 18
- Positive: 15
- Negative: 3
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Uniflame Creates | 8 Feb 2012
The story pulled me in though and this is always a good sign
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Common Sense Media | 1 Jan 2012
Author Wendelin Van Draanen, a former teacher, clearly knows kids this age well and actually spent time sleeping outdoors, stowing away in a bus, and exploring a shelter to have a taste of the homeless experience -- her research is evident in the book's careful details.
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Teen Reads | 18 Oct 2011
But Van Draanen is an excellent writer and Holly is someone to admire as she perseveres in a life that would destroy most people. Her story is worth reading and learning from.
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Curled Up Kids | 1 Sep 2006
Even though Wendelin Van Draanen has a history of writing fabulous and popular novels (Flipped and the Sammy Keyes series, for example), Runaway exceeds the expectations of even her biggest fans.
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Kirkus Reviews | 12 Sep 2006
Despite occasional lapses into uncharacteristically sophisticated language and decidedly philosophical musings, her first-person story, presented in journal form, will grab readers from the first entry.
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Book Loons | 1 Sep 2006
I recommend it as a tremendous, powerful read, after which you will never look at a homeless person in the same way again.
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Reading Rocks | 29 Apr 2011
Reading this book may make the problems you have in your life seem very small in comparison to Holly's. Despite the sadness the reader feels while reading about Holly's experiences, the ending will bring you comfort.
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Books4Hearts | 25 May 2011
Overall, this was a pretty good book. I wouldn't recommend it, but I wouldn't not recommend it, either.
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The Book on the Hill | 30 Sep 2009
Fascinating and very well written (maybe too well for a 12-year-old character ?). Holly is a very charming character, brave and vulnerable at the same time, very intelligent and strangely cunning.
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Youth Services Book Review | 18 Apr 2007
This accessible story of self discovery will interest teens and is a good choice for reluctant readers
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HSJ | 27 Sep 2006
Overall, Runaway was a touching story about a girl that just wants love and a family, and I would recommend it to those who need some inspiration in their life.
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Bildungsroman | 13 Jan 2007
The author did a great deal of research for this book, and it shows. Runaway is a real eye-opener of a book. It deserves a lot of attention, and will inspire a great deal of discussion in the classroom and in the home.
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Arlington Public Library | 22 Aug 2011
Runaway will keep you running after Holly until the last page is turned.
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Young Adult Book Reviews | 23 Jul 2010
Readers who like journal style entries like in Go Ask Alice will find this interesting. Also, fans of A Child Called It will enjoy this quick read about a similar topic.
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Flamingnet Book Blog | 28 Jan 2007
I thought it was a great read and not your normal book. It contained many deep thoughts and insights into life which can leave you with a whole different impression of those less fortunate than you.
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Spellbound by Books | 21 Aug 2010
The vulnerability of the character showed through in Draanen's writing and made this easy to imagine a 12 year old girl going through.
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Bookshelves of Doom | 24 Oct 2006
Runaway chronicles Holly's journey across the country, by train, bus and horse trailer. It isn't just a story about homelessness -- because, regardless of what Holly tells herself, she is homeless and she knows it -- it's an urban survival story.
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