Get Lost! Dorene Meyer. Illustrated by Steve Meyer. Norway House, MB: Goldrock Press, 2013. 78 pp., trade pbk. (includes CD), $19.95. ISBN 978-1-927410-12-7. Grades 4-7 / Ages 9-12. Review by Elaine Fuhr. *** /4

excerpt:

Andrew put a hand to his face. His nose must have started bleeding again or maybe he had a fat lip or something. He’d been out in the cold long enough to numb the skin on his face. It would hurt after he’d been inside for a while and started to warm up.

Andrew lowered his eyes away from Joshua’s curious gaze.

“You look like maybe you got into a fight!”

Andrew kicked at a chunk of snow that lay in his path.

“That Michael…Why doesn’t he just stay in Chicago-with all his fancy talk and his big fancy clothes? He doesn’t belong up here!”

     Andrew is tired of Michael’s behavior and his attitude about having to come to Rabbit Lake with his family for Christmas. He lives in Chicago, dressing and acting like a city boy. He just doesn’t belong here. Both boys feel jealousy and anger when they are together, neither wanting to give an inch. But Andrew doesn’t know what’s behind Michael’s attitude and doesn’t realize that the city boy really just needs a friend and someone to talk to. A near death caused by a silly argument brings the boys together, and Andrew finds a friend he tried so hard to ignore.

     Get Lost, by Dorene Meyer, has been illustrated and is now accompanied by an audio book. In audio book format, this story is now available to many reluctant readers of the age of Andrew and Michael, young teens attending junior high or middle school. Children who are auditory learners will also find this novel a much easier story to comprehend than those that are only available to the reader. The novel is read by a woman with a warm, clear, well-modulated and very expressive voice. She speaks with the same inflections that modern kids use, making the story relevant and the speech familiar. This audio book will make reading more enjoyable as an individual reading project or as a class project that will allow children of all reading levels to read, comprehend and share right along with their classmates, leading to more self-esteem and confidence. Get Lost is an excellent story made more available to readers of all abilities.

Recommended.

Elaine Fuhr, who lives in AB, is a retired elementary and middle school teacher.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

Copyright © the Manitoba Library Association. Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without permission.

Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

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