Halfway to the Sky by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

Here's one more Maud Hart Lovelace nominated book that I read last week. I'm kind of mixed on this one—I don't think it's a great book, but I was personally interested in the Appalachian Trail setting. Dani is only 12 but she has big plans. She runs away from home with the intention of hiking the entire Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine. She's running away for a reason—her family has fallen apart ever since the death of her older brother, who had muscular dystrophy. She also has a reason to run to the Appalachian Trail. It's where her parents met and she has heard about it all of her life. Dani's mother finds her on the trail right away, and the two end up hiking for a couple of months together. It's a time for both of them to face the past and to get ready for the future. It is a pretty predictable story about growing up and moving on, but the author made it interesting by weaving numerous details about the trail and its traditions. I would recommend this book for sixth grade readers, especially kids with an interest in the outdoors.