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Escape
Twelve-year-old Micah’s single mom struggles as a recovering alcoholic and when she returns to rehab, Micah is forced to live with his controlling grandfather—a situation he dreads. But Micah makes a discovery. By touching the floating sailing ships on the bedroom wallpaper, he suddenly transports from his grandfather’s house to a ship in the Caribbean Sea. His adventures as a pirate and the son of One-Eye Nate are set in motion.
214 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2012
120 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 6, 2013
Wise Bear Books Reviews Escape by Georgia Bruton -- 5 Paws!
Escape is ostensibly a conventional story about a family fractured by alcoholism, but this is no simple children’s book. Author Bruton takes on sophisticated and sometimes difficult family themes, yet manages to infuse fun in the process—not an easy feat.
The novel begins with 12-year-old Micah finding his mother passed out drunk in their home. With the arrival of Micah's gruff grandfather on the scene, we quickly come to understand the pattern of alcohol abuse Micah has had to witness and endure throughout his short life. Further complicating his anxiety in the matter, Micah's grandfather is seemingly devoid of any compassion or empathy for his grandson's situation. His grandfather's actions appear to be performed out of duty rather than love or concern.
Micah is in a no-win situation. He loves his mother but is constantly disappointed by her ongoing struggles with her disease. Each time she falls off the wagon and returns to rehab, Micah is forced to live with his uncaring, emotionless grandfather and his live-in girlfriend, Caroline, who is kind but essentially a stranger to him.
Struggling to find rest in an unfamiliar bedroom, Micah notices an irregularity in the room's ship-themed wallpaper and as he reaches out to touch the peculiar area, he is transported back in time to a high seas pirate ship where he is the son of Captain One-Eye Nate. How and why this happens is shocking and confusing to Micah, causing him to further isolate himself rather than risk being ostracized.
Micah's sanctuary is swimming. He's a member of his school's swim team and he's not only good, but his coach believes Micah has Junior Olympic potential with a strict practice regimen and proper training throughout the summer. Just when Micah's world is beginning to stabilize, his grandfather informs him that he's being shipped off to California for the summer to stay with his Uncle Brad whom he's never met.
Initially excited at the thought of going to California, Micah is also conflicted for fear of losing his Olympic swimming opportunity. He's also wistful about his supernatural journeys to the high seas as he has grown accustomed to his double life.
The primary question for readers of this novel lies in Micah's escapist journeys to the paranormal pirate ship. Are the jaunts into fantasy real or imagined? Is he dreaming or does he possess some magical power to explore? Essentially, readers must decide for themselves.
Bruton takes on a number of complex subjects within the scope of alcoholism with great sensitivity. It's quite extraordinary to see how one woman's struggle with addiction affects each member of Micah's family and how they come to heal together. There are some mature themes within Escape, but somehow the author manages to avoid the darker themes of addiction, which is important for the age group she's attempting to reach.
The characters are well developed and Micah is a worthy protagonist. The author's writing style flows nicely, but there are a few instances in dialogue where there is some minor stiffness between characters, particularly between Micah and his uncle and aunt. The novel's themes are important lessons for readers of all ages. Overall, Escape is a wonderful, balanced story about love, family, forgiveness and redemption. We highly recommend this book to children 10-years-old and above.
This book was reviewed as part of the Wise Bear Digital Book Awards competition. Entry fees associated with the contest are administrative in nature and do not influence our honest, unbiased book reviews.
Escape is ostensibly a conventional story about a family fractured by alcoholism, but this is no simple children’s book. Author Bruton takes on sophisticated and sometimes difficult family themes, yet manages to infuse fun in the process—not an easy feat.
The novel begins with 12-year-old Micah finding his mother passed out drunk in their home. With the arrival of Micah's gruff grandfather on the scene, we quickly come to understand the pattern of alcohol abuse Micah has had to witness and endure throughout his short life. Further complicating his anxiety in the matter, Micah's grandfather is seemingly devoid of any compassion or empathy for his grandson's situation. His grandfather's actions appear to be performed out of duty rather than love or concern.
Micah is in a no-win situation. He loves his mother but is constantly disappointed by her ongoing struggles with her disease. Each time she falls off the wagon and returns to rehab, Micah is forced to live with his uncaring, emotionless grandfather and his live-in girlfriend, Caroline, who is kind but essentially a stranger to him.
Struggling to find rest in an unfamiliar bedroom, Micah notices an irregularity in the room's ship-themed wallpaper and as he reaches out to touch the peculiar area, he is transported back in time to a high seas pirate ship where he is the son of Captain One-Eye Nate. How and why this happens is shocking and confusing to Micah, causing him to further isolate himself rather than risk being ostracized.
Micah's sanctuary is swimming. He's a member of his school's swim team and he's not only good, but his coach believes Micah has Junior Olympic potential with a strict practice regimen and proper training throughout the summer. Just when Micah's world is beginning to stabilize, his grandfather informs him that he's being shipped off to California for the summer to stay with his Uncle Brad whom he's never met.
Initially excited at the thought of going to California, Micah is also conflicted for fear of losing his Olympic swimming opportunity. He's also wistful about his supernatural journeys to the high seas as he has grown accustomed to his double life.
The primary question for readers of this novel lies in Micah's escapist journeys to the paranormal pirate ship. Are the jaunts into fantasy real or imagined? Is he dreaming or does he possess some magical power to explore? Essentially, readers must decide for themselves.
Bruton takes on a number of complex subjects within the scope of alcoholism with great sensitivity. It's quite extraordinary to see how one woman's struggle with addiction affects each member of Micah's family and how they come to heal together. There are some mature themes within Escape, but somehow the author manages to avoid the darker themes of addiction, which is important for the age group she's attempting to reach.
The characters are well developed and Micah is a worthy protagonist. The author's writing style flows nicely, but there are a few instances in dialogue where there is some minor stiffness between characters, particularly between Micah and his uncle and aunt. The novel's themes are important lessons for readers of all ages. Overall, Escape is a wonderful, balanced story about love, family, forgiveness and redemption. We highly recommend this book to children 10-years-old and above.
This book was reviewed as part of the Wise Bear Digital Book Awards competition. Entry fees associated with the contest are administrative in nature and do not influence our honest, unbiased book reviews.
January 14, 2013
Escape is a book that young people would enjoy. I read the early chapters at Authonomy.com and wondered where the story would go. Fantasy might be escapist while this author uses the fantasy element to render Micah's realizations about escape. His mother is alcoholic and his grandfather's life is unsettled. Pirate wallpaper in a bedroom at his grandfather's lures him into dreams about being at sea with pirates that remind him eventually of people in his life. He escapes to his uncle's in California where he learns to surf. The movement of the book, from Micah's real competitive involvement with swimming to a surfing accident, from his needing fostering by other family members to their working things out with his mother, portrays Micah's compromises with his realities. The book is deftly written and it rounds out Micah's character while revealing his swimming friends and family in ways that would absorb the young reader.
May 3, 2013
Delightful story of a young troubled boy who "escapes" to the high seas on a pirate ship. There's plenty of action and humor, forgiveness and redemption in this tale that never let's you down! Loved it and I'm hoping it will be a series!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews