Fourmile

by Watt Key

Twelve-year-old Foster knows in his gut that Dax Ganey, the man dating his widowed mother, is a bad seed. Then a mysterious stranger arrives at their Alabama farm, a former Army Ranger in Iraq rambling across the country, and Foster believes he has found an ally against Dax. The stranger proves a fascinating mentor, full of wisdom and secrets. And Dax soon has reason to resent not just him and Foster but also Foster's mother. A spurned Dax will be a dangerous enemy, but Foster is increasingly aware that the stranger is just as dangerous, if not more so.

From the author of one of the most highly acclaimed children's survival adventures of the last decade comes this tautly wound new novel reminiscent of classic westerns, about a boy caught in the middle of a clash that may turn out to be his own battle to fight.

Genres: Realistic Fiction, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Coming Of Age, Fiction, Adventure, Childrens

240 pages, Hardcover

First published September 18, 2012

Reviews

[Mrs. Strudthoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished "Fourmile" by Watt Key (also the author of "Alabama Moon). You do NOT want to read this book before you try to fall asleep. It's not a scary book but the fast-paced action and suspense will get your adrenaline pumping and you won't be able to sleep.

Foster, his dog Joe, and his mom live at Fourmile, the name of the farm that his dad bought a number of years ago. Foster's dad is dead--but you don't find out how he died until later in the book. Mom has a boyfriend, Dax, who is incredibly mean to Joe which, of course, make Foster dislike Dax a lot. (As a reader, I thought "Mom, you gotta dump this Dax guy.") One day, a stranger comes walking down the road with a mountain climber backpack and a dog named Kabo. Because Foster's mom is trying to sell the farm so they can move to the city, she hires the stranger (Gary) to make repairs on the property. Foster and Gary forge a strong relationship. But Dax is not happy about Gary being on the farm with Foster's mom. That's where the conflict begins and the action and suspense grow to a shocking, CSI-type of ending.

I hope "Fourmile" is made into a movie!

[PJ Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked the book because its interesting, its a mystery, and like stuff pops out of know where. Thinking about it I don't have anything not to like in the book. The book has good writing some words I couldn't read but over all the book is good. I really don't know what kind of people that would like thus but like its so fun and you get in to the book fast and then you don't wanna stop reading it.

[Cathy Blackler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another gripping, coming of age tale by Watt Key. A terrible accident leaves Foster and his mother wanting to put the pieces off their lives back together. Enter Dax, evil incarnate. With the help of Gary, a mysterious stranger who breezes through their lives with secrets of his own, Foster & his mother learn to live with the pain of the past and realize the power and importance of moving forward.

[Stephanie A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

November 2015: I really enjoyed Barbie and Joe's dynamic on "Under the Dome" (TV version), and this book gave me something similar in spades. A preteen boy, recently down a father, latches with hero worship onto a cool older guy fresh out of the Army, drawn to his physical strength, handiness with tools, all-around life skills, understanding of dogs (and boys), humble quietness and obvious strength of moral character, despite equally obvious shades of darkness in his past.

But you can tell it's not an insurmountable type of dark past, just the kind where the person isn't proud of all his choices and is trying to make up for them by living a better life now. If that life happens to include stopping a while to help out and protect a dangerously-close-to-being-battered widow and her young son, so much the better, in terms of how much I love reading about it. And if what I'm reading happens to include not one but TWO awesome dogs, even better.

It required some suspension of disbelief about just how bad a mother the widow is at first (seriously, who doesn't dump a guy immediately after he breaks your kid's dog's rib with a tire iron), but once she screws her head on straight the payoff is well worth it.

It's also one of the first books I've ever read on my own and thought, "They should teach this in schools." I read it quickly, but I could feel the tug of where you could dig deeper into the text, think about themes and lead discussions about them, particularly the idea of what it means to grow up.

Small spoiler for end: As much as I wanted the happy ending where the farm is saved and they all live happily ever after as a family, there was too much foreshadowing to really believe that would come true, even just the "farm is saved" part. And so the ending was appropriately bittersweet and a little bit bleak and painful, but not without hope that sooner or later, everyone's lives will turn out okay. (And, to quote a bit from Wicked, "changed for the better, because I knew you.") I can't honestly say I'd have written it any other way.
----------
February 2018: It has been over two years and this book has yet to leave my heart. Read it for a second time because I missed the characters so much, ended up spending all day with it, savoring every chapter and bookmarking roughly 19 favorite scenes, and subsequently upgraded rating from 4 to 5 stars.

The bond between Gary and Foster is incredible, and this time I found myself clinging tight to every little interaction the former had with Linda, too; maybe doing discrete finger curls regardless of what kind of age difference I'm looking at here. He just fits so well into the framework of the farm, unassumingly fixing things, be they physical or emotional. Meanwhile, watching him square off against Dax, whatever form that takes, is just so satisfying.

(Should I be paying more attention to Foster, the actual main character? Probably. I mean, reading it, I do; he is a great narrator. I just don't know how to articulate why. Although I am making a lot of "awww" sounds about him crying into Gary's shirt more than once.)

Incidentally, this time I read the paperback edition, and it was wonderful to comb the author interview and find a) more insights into the characters -- even if I respectfully disagree with his vision of Gary's future, and b) that his earliest writing inspiration was Jim Kjelgaard, because I've been thinking to myself that that's exactly what his work reminds me of.

[Emily Northcutt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is definitely a book with a lot of potential appeal to reluctant readers. Its portrayal of farm life is something that doesn't come up very often in the literature I read and would speak to the life experience of many of my male students. Coincidentally, I would classify many of my reluctant readers as those same farm boys. Without having taught in rural KY farm country for the last 8 years, there are lots of details in this novel that would have gone right over my head before i got to know many of my students and their families so well. I definitely felt for these characters and I think readers will be riveted as the story unfolds and secrets are revealed.

That said, the language and violence make me feel like this is something that I would make available only to my 7th-8th graders in my school library. I think that mature 6th graders can handle the content, but I'm not sure that I'm comfortable with offering to that group of students. I either classify books as available for all readers, 5th-8th grade readers, or 7th-8th grade readers so I will be placing in this in my YA section. This is an emotionally raw novel and really is best for mature middle grades readers, in my opinion.

Final verdict? Highly recommended for 7th grade and up.

[Angus · Rating 5 out of 5]

The tension slowly builds during this well-crafted novel. A stranger comes into the lives of a 12-year-old boy and his mother just as they are struggling to sell the farm they live on after the unexpected death of the husband/father. The stranger promises to help fix up the place in order to sell it. Both Foster, the boy and his mother grow to admire and value the presence of the stranger, especially when he confronts the mother's abusive boyfriend. But the stranger has secrets he is not sharing and Key puts the kettle on a slow boil. There are small episodic fireworks along the way which fortell the spectacular explosive scenes at the end of the book. Key is a master at smouldering narrative that eventually burst into flames with breathtaking drama. I was quite exhausted by it all at the end of the book. Well worth the read. Watt Key does not dissapoint. Love this cover too by the way.

[Mari Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Key can really craft a great story. I could hardly put this one down. Once again though I feel that this book might be a bit old, both in subject matter and language, for its intended audience of middle grade readers. This is the story of Foster, a child who has lost his father in a horrific accident, his mother and her poor choice of a boyfriend, Dax. Into their life comes a mysterious stranger and the story evolves from there. I think this would be an excellent story for older teens (maybe 13+) and one that some could probably relate to. Parents need to be aware though that there is a lot of violence, drinking and profanity. I feel though that this book would make a great discussion piece on alcohol, PTSD, violence against women, etc. besides being a great story.

[Tiger Emrich · Rating 5 out of 5]

First reaction is DANG!!! This book made me so happy, sad, angry, and all other emotions. The beginning of the book made me really mad. Foster is the main character. I don't necessarily relate with him but I understand what he is going through. His mom has a horrible boyfriend. Except, they aren't dating?? It's kind of weird. Her boyfriend, Dax, is super fake. He is nice to Foster's mom but not to Foster. The author does a really nice job to make you dislike him. Like, I wanted to hit him and I'm not an aggressive person. Back to the story. Everything got so much better when we met Gary. Foster saw Gary walking down his road. It's only weird because they live in the country in the middle of nowhere. Foster immediately likes Gary. It makes your heart swell because Foster stops being depressed. Foster has been out of it ever since his dad died. It's so great. Foster and his mom let Gary stay and YESS! So happy they did that. Gary makes their lives so much better. However, he has a secret of his own and he causes problems with Dax. However, life is so much better with Gary. He becomes Foster's father figure. He gets them out of their comfort zones. He makes me so happy. He is so nice to Foster. IT JUST MAKES ME SO HAPPY!!!! Dax has an issue though. And one night, everything breaks loose. It starts off with Dax driving by, dropping poisoned meat, and killing Foster's dog. Yes, I did cry during that part. Then Gary went to Dax's house and they fought. I don't like fighting.. AND LATER!!! Dax and his two scary friends came over. I was scared. Like, for real. I'm not going to go into detail about it because I seriously recommend this book and I am not about to spoil this for you. All I can say is this.. Gary said something to Foster. It made my heart swell and I cried again. Then, more things happen. The ending made me upset but I knew it was going to happen. They said from the beginning that it was going to. I didn't want it to actually happen though. I feel like I'm going to be like that forever though. It happened in a movie I saw once and I was disappointed by the ending still. So, I don't want to ruin it. I recommend though. It made me so happy!!

[Savanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really like this book. I hate how Dax control, or tries to control Foster and Linda. I love how Foster throw a brick at Dax's car. Its sad that Fosters dad died. Foster doesn't do good in school because of his dad's death. Dax took money from Linda to fix his windshield and he didn't even say thank you when he got the money. Foster had to paint the fence as a punishment for breaking Dax's windshield. Watch I think is unfair because dax was asking for it. Some guy came down the driveway and his name is Gary, Foster trusted him and he helped him out. Dax came over to Fosters house and Joe, Fosters dog ran at him and Dax hit him with a Tire Iron, I was so mad at that point. I really recommend this book it's real good.

[Tracey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-crafted page-turner that I started when I went to bed last night and finished early this morning. This has been on my TBR for a long while, and I'm glad I finally read it. I'll put Watt Key on my list of authors to read.

[Hunter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fourmile is a really good book. Its easy to read and not very complicated. I liked the book because it was basically me. I never really want to leave my house like Foster. But I'm for a different reason. The story gets kind of sad near the end of the book. At the end of the book you find out where and how Fosters dad died. They also burry Joe where there dad died. Joe is Foster's dog who got poisoned by Dax. At the end of the book it was pretty predictable that Foster was going to go to Montgomery and like it there. Gary got locked up for leaving the army without permission.

[Aedon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book was really good and the theme is never let your guard down and always stick up for each other

[Cole Syring · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was really good to read. The book started with Foster and his mom moving to a new town and living on a farm but Foster didn't like that. I was surprised with the start of the book how Foster got mad and went out to the guys truck and threw a brick at his windshield. I knew he would be mad at Foster for it. He mad Foster help him paint the barn and other things for it, but Foster didn't mind doing so of the things. Later on I was shocked that the soldier that came to the house started a big fight with the other guy. The one guy got cut and started to bleed from his arm. So Foster helped him with that because mother wasn't home. The soldier went to his house. The next day the family went to talk to the soldier and he wasn't there and they didn't know where he went.

[Oakley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I din't really like this book at all. This book could barely keep my attention for more than a chapter. I think that there really was not much action in this book. There was even an entire chapter on just painting a fence. This book didn't do well on making me feel any emotion. I don't really feel like this book has much to offer. (WARNING SPOILERS) I didn't even really care when one of the main characters died. Overall I don't recommend this book to anybody. But you might like this book because it is relatable. I thought that it was way too relatable that it was boring.

[Cassie O · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fourmile
By: Watt Key

Watt Key grew up around books. His grandfather and parents would always read him books. Key enjoyed books and books were most of his entertainment. Key writes fictional books. One of his fictional books is named Fourmile. Fourmile is a very interesting full of adventuring through life type of book. It describes a family with no dad and how tough that can be. The mom tries to fix it with replacing Foster’s dad with a new boyfriend.
You can tell Key put in a lot of time towards this book. He tries to make his book full of emotions that will last throughout the book. There is so much detail in this book about everything. He either writes things with the greatly amount of detail or just doesn’t write it at all. Fourmile made me realize how it would feel to grow up in a family with only one parent. Depending on which parent died it could have certain effects on you. In the story, Foster’s dad died so he didn’t have as many skills with how to handle things in a “guy” way. I also got to put myself in situations that could happen to anyone.
I think this book is emotion packed. You have your sad times. Specifically, Foster’s dad being dead. There are tough times when Foster had to put up with all of Dax’s nonsense. You also have to accept that you’re going to feel a lot of suspense throughout the book. Fourmile wasn’t a hard book to read. It was rather more easy, but unpredictable. The book wasn’t so appealing at the beginning but it was just one of those reads that make you want to continue, then gradually gets better. Fourmile is a good book for basically anyone that can understand it. No matter what type of books you're into, I guarantee you'll enjoy this.

[Kaylynn Kissinger]

I personally found Fourmile extremely intriguing. This novel, really conveys the thought of keeping your memories with you wherever you go. Also, Key tries and succeeds to portray that people who are least expected in your life can mean so much: sometimes you just need to pick your head up and see people for who they really are. Dax, who is Foster’s mother’s boyfriend sort of represents the issues in life that “ruin” your memories of a better time. When Gary comes along, Foster gets his mother to realize after a while that Dax shouldn’t be around anymore. Fourmile is not just some country story about moving to a different place because his life was miserable. Key’s story was written to show that you can move on when you want to, whether it’s now or never, but leaving won’t destroy your past memories. Sometimes you have to let go of the past even if it hurts, but you will never forget, and you can remember when you want to. It’s all mental. It’s your decision to make if you want to live in the moment and remember, or live in the past and never remember. Key’s novel also inspires you to take risks, because if you don’t, you could end up in something you don’t want to be in.

[Kary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been absolutely gutted by this book. In the best possible way, of course. Foster is still grieving the loss of his father while his mother is in a relationship with a very volatile, abusive man, Dax. A wandering stranger, Gary, shows up at the farm and immediately Foster feels drawn to him. Foster's mother offers him a place to stay in their barn if he helps to fix some things up around the farm. Meanwhile, things with Dax start to spiral out of control, and Gary gets in the middle of it. All the while, Foster becomes very attached to Gary and starts to see him as a kind of father figure. But Gary has secrets. The last 100 pages or so had me absolutely glued...

I will be pushing this to many of my middle school boys - particularly those who loved Red Kayak by Priscilla Cummings (which is taught by our pre AP English teachers). I think this will be hugely popular with reluctant boy readers. I so wish I read this sooner!!

[Anthony Chornyy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fourmile by Watt Key was a book that talked about the life of a boy who lost his father. After his father died, the boy's mother finds a bad boyfriend who seems nice at first. The more the boy spends time with his mother's boyfriend the more he sees the bad side of the boyfriend. The boy(Foster) runs into a man who ends up helping Foster fix up his farm and get his life together. Read the book to find out the rest.

[Artem · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book Fourmile by Watt Key is a really good book.It talked about a life of a boy or Foster who lost his dad. After his dad died, Fosters mom finds a boyfriend who turns out to be bad but seems nice at first. Foster spends a lot of time with the his moms boyfriend and he starts to feel like somethings wrong with him. Foster then runs into a man who ends up helping him out. He fixed up his farm and got his life together. To find out more read the book.

[Preston Leisure · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked Fourmile. I liked how Gary came into the story. I liked the sequence of the book. I was surprised when Joe died. I didn't expect it when Gary's arm was cut. What I didn't like about Fourmile was Dax. But every story needs a villain. I didn't expect Linda to break up with Dax. The thing I liked most about Fourmile was how Foster made friends

[Art · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book about Alabama, Life continuing after death of loved one, and relationships of boys, mothers and mothers boyfriends. Also what a dog means to a family.
Young man needs father figure in life to help him continue.

Thought of my life in "My Life in Dog Years" by Paulsen & "Marley and Me!"

[Martha · Rating 3 out of 5]

When you and your dog do not like your mother's boyfriend, how do you handle it? When a stranger comes around, how do you handle it? This is intense writing about dangerous people that has Foster in the middle of the situation. Not for the faint of heart.

[Frezanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gives me a bittersweet feeling. Though story wise it's a simple story, the emotion packed in the book is multi-layered and deep. This is a story about letting go and moving on. As we grew up, this is a skill we learnt. That doesn't mean leaving things behind is an easy thing to do.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard to put down. Compelling, tense, and thoughtfully written. I wonder about the story; is it based on truth? Full review will be on the blog!

[Sharon Meskill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book of the year so far.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Compelling story with lots of suspense building to a violent confrontration.

[Trai Ervine · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book is really good. At the begging of the book its not that good but it will make you wanna keep reading until its over.

[Shaunna Roszell]

I thought it was really good. But some parts were sad.

[Mark Buxton · Rating 4 out of 5]

My name is Foster, and I knew Dax was no good. He's lazy, drinks too much, and scares me whenever he comes to see my mom. I don't blame Joe for wanting to bite him, but I'm afraid Dax will kill him someday. Then, Gary showed up. He was walking all the way to Texas, but he's been staying in our barn for a couple of weeks. He said he fought in Afghanistan, and Joe and I trust him. Dax doesn't. Gary's been helping to clean things up around here, since my mom wants to sell the farm and move away. I look forward to waking up every day to help him. Mom says he's keeping secrets about his past, and she's afraid I'm getting too close. I can't help it; I feel safe when he's around. Looking back now, I should have known that danger and pain were inevitable.

This book evoked some heavy emotions. Foster was still coping with the death of his father, as more about the incident was revealed later in the story. Dax introduced a level of danger to Foster, his mom, and his dog. While Gary brought a calming effect to Foster, his presence worsened the situation with Dax. These emotional journeys were the backbone of the plot. Foster lacked motivation to behave like a normal kid, and this left him isolated and alone. His one friend was his dog. With Gary's help, he slowly transformed and learned to deal with his issues. I'll admit there was sadness, so be prepared to be affected. I won't say everyone lived happily ever after, but they got on with their stories. Overall, I can recommend this book to readers looking for an emotional drama.

[Eva Mazur · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Minutes ago I literally finished this book! Wholey Crap it was AMAZING!!!! Watt Key is such an amazing author! I have only read 2 of his books so far (Deep waters and Fourmile) and I am dying to read the rest! This book is Practically Perfect in every way! I had to wait for weeks to get this book from my school library and I can tell why everyone wanted to read it now!
The book was so touching and it really got to me! Now I am not going to do any spoilers but this book gave me a wide range of feelings! I was sad at times, Happy, Confused, On edge, But every time I read another chapter, and was told by my teacher to "Put that damn book down little missy!" I didn't because I wanted to know what was going to happen!
I would give this book 5 out of 5 stars and I recommend this book to everyone who needs something to read!
Stay safe and have a Merry Christmas and Happy Late Hanukkah ;)
From Mazz Thron