I really like this book. I did read Mockingbird, and think that if you did not read it, that before reading this book you should read that one.

I like how the main person goes on adverture like the main person in Mockingbird ( )

Erin has never met her mother, who died when she was two, and among the only possessions she has from her is a marked-up copy of To Kill a Mockingbird. Recognizing the book’s impact on her mother’s life and also her desire to meet Harper Lee, Erin herself runs away to meet the author, meeting along the way a series of characters who help her learn more about herself and her relationship with the woman she no longer remembers. This book is simply written and would be great for younger teens. ( )

Set in the context of a thousand mile bus ride, Erin learns a lot about her mother, herself, and life through the people she meets and the book, To Kill a Mockingbird. While rather cliched in a number of ways, it was a quick read and would probably appeal to those who are fans of Mockingbird. ( )

Erin is about to turn 16, and her dad has just announced he's going to marry again. Erin's mom died when she was very young, but she's not crazy about the idea of getting a new mom when she barely knows her real mother. One of the few things she does know is that her mom loved Harper Lee's book To Kill A Mockingbird, and that her mom once wrote Harper Lee a letter asking how you know if you have what it takes to be a writer. Erin found her mom's old, battered copy of the novel in the attic, and has read it countless times-- so many times that it's become a sort of security blanket for her.
In a moment of desperation the night before her 16th birthday, Erin leaves her home in Minnesota and hops a Greyhound bus for Monroeville, Alabama on a quest to meet the reclusive author. Secretly, Erin hopes to find out answers about herself as well as her mother by visiting with the author. Loretta Ellsworth's novel is short, but she is able to show a change in Erin as the teenager meets new people and sees new places on her journey south. The many references to Mockingbird make it an especially enjoyable read for the many people who've read the book; I think I high school students who've read it recently might especially enjoy it for that reason. Some of the characters lack depth, and the story has an unsurprising ending. However, it's a quick, fun read that focuses on loss, forgiveness, and like Mockingbird-- humanity and coming of age. ( )

This book (along with 25 others) is a potential Gateway Award (awarded by the Missouri Association of School Librarians) nominee.

I read the book as a reader selector for that committee and will rate it as to it's suitability and interest to teen readers.

SPOILER ALERT!

A nearly 16 year-old girl in St. Paul Minnesota undertakes a journey, a quest if you will, to discover her mother via her mother's (and by extension her own) favorite story [b]To Kill a Mockingbird[/b]. Along the way, as in any quest, she meets some interesting characters, makes new friends, and discovers things about herself, and ultimately grows up.

[u]Things I liked[/u]: 1) the descriptions of the bus stations and the bus rides. The author perfectly captured the tedium, the smells, the mind-numbingly boringness of long distance bus travel. 2) the way the quest ended was very good...

[u]Things I didn't like[/u]: 1) the author made a few mistakes on some of the details; i.e. the story is set in 1986, 20-something Epp Gobarth grew up in Missouri and recalls his dad never missing a Rams game with him when he a kid... except the Rams didn't move to St. Louis until 1995. Simple fix... change it to Cardinals games and it's fine. 2) her families characterization was kinda flat... her bothers came off as nothing but jerks, and the author never really managed to change our opinions.

Overall, I'll probably rate the book with 3 stars out of 5. ( )