Bound To Stay Bound

School Library Journal - 11/01/2016 Gr 4–6—Rydr is Chicago-bound on an Amtrak train from Palm Springs, CA. Leaving her recently deceased grandmother, Rydr travels through the West and Midwest toward an uncertain future with a distant and unknown relative. Rydr is used to making her way through life solo and is still working through her mother's struggle with drugs and subsequent death. Armed with her SpongeBob wristwatch and subsisting on a diet of doughnut holes and veggie burgers, Rydr spends her journey meeting a variety of passengers and avoiding Dorothea, her assigned chaperone. Through her interactions with Carlos, a writer paid by the train company to put pen to paper, and Tenderchunks, a poetry-loving Boy Scout, Rydr finds comfort in words and gains a new outlook on her future. In this debut novel, Mosier gives middle grade readers a character who battles life's challenges with extreme honesty and doesn't sugarcoat her inner battles. VERDICT A tale that will stay with readers long after they reach the final destination. A strong purchase for middle grade collections.—Claire Moore, Darien Library, CT - Copyright 2016 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Bulletin for the Center... - 01/01/2017 The death of Rydr’s grandmother, who was reluctantly taking care of the twelve-year-old girl after Rydr’s drug-addicted mother overdosed, means yet another relocation for Rydr, this time by long-distance train off to Chicago to live with a relative she’s never met. Over the course of the trip, she is cared for by Dorothea, a kind but exasperated Amtrak attendant; befriended by Neal, the chatty, amiable, café worker; intrigued by the elderly Carlos, a poet; and perhaps romantically wooed by Tenderchunks, a misunderstood and misfit Boy Scout. She is also inspired by Allen Ginsberg’s poetry, buries her mother’s ashes in the woods, and comes to terms with her mother’s and her grandmother’s neglect. It’s quite a transformation for such a short journey, and it seems as though every character enters the scene at just the right time to impart some sage wisdom, making the train ride a gimmicky experience. The most honest and raw moments are Rydr’s flashbacks to her therapy sessions with Dr. Lola, who is less preternaturally wise than authentically concerned for Rydr and able to gently interrogate her in a way that none of the other characters do. Rydr herself is sympathetic, and she’s got a believable voice, a mix of vulnerability, edginess, and raw fury at her rotten luck. Readers who like drama, sentiment, and tidy, tearful endings may find this to be the ticket. KQG - Copyright 2017 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.

Booklist - 01/01/2017 *Starred Review* While some journey hopefully toward a destination, Rydr’s expectations are decidedly low. Following her grandmother’s death, she’s traveling by rail to meet her next guardian, a great-uncle she has never met. In the meantime, the train becomes her home. She befriends a couple of passengers as well as her Amtrak chaperone and the snack-counter attendant, while the train travels from California to Chicago. Along the way, she celebrates her thirteenth birthday, deals with a personal crisis, and forms a strong bond with a boy. Each of these occurrences has an element of the unexpected as well as a feeling of inevitability. And in the end, this tough, smart, vulnerable kid leaves readers with the conviction that wherever she’s headed, it’s going to turn out OK. Written in a style that is simple and direct but not without nuance, the novel introduces Rydr as an initially enigmatic narrator whose story becomes more intricate and more involving as the many complications of her journey elicit memories from her past. While there’s tragedy in Rydr’s background, her way forward is lit by insight and hope. In his first novel, Mosier offers a cast of well-drawn characters, an unusual setting, and a rewarding reading experience. - Copyright 2017 Booklist.

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