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Drive
Twin sisters find themselves growing apart as they respond differently to their father’s postwar trauma, the NASCAR speedway in their town, and their new high school
With home life destabilized by her father’s post-World War II trauma, Ellie Honeycutt seeks escape at the NASCAR speedway and in her dreams of travel and college. Meanwhile, her twin sister, Ida, clings to family and finds solace in her sketchbook. Their close relationship is threatened when they both fall for the same charming classmate at their new high school—but a devastating car accident renews the sisters’ deep bond, forcing them to reverse their roles.
Set against the backdrop of the nuclear arms race and the 1952 presidential election, this middle grade historical fiction novel is a powerful story of sisterhood and growing up, told in the twins’ alternating voices.
With home life destabilized by her father’s post-World War II trauma, Ellie Honeycutt seeks escape at the NASCAR speedway and in her dreams of travel and college. Meanwhile, her twin sister, Ida, clings to family and finds solace in her sketchbook. Their close relationship is threatened when they both fall for the same charming classmate at their new high school—but a devastating car accident renews the sisters’ deep bond, forcing them to reverse their roles.
Set against the backdrop of the nuclear arms race and the 1952 presidential election, this middle grade historical fiction novel is a powerful story of sisterhood and growing up, told in the twins’ alternating voices.
- GenresHistorical Fiction
352 pages, Hardcover
Published September 11, 2018
9 people are currently reading
82 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
October 24, 2018
This is the review I wrote for SFBR. Twins Ida and Ellie Honeycutt are looking forward to moving on to the local high school. They have always been together — in the same classes, even sharing a bed. Nothing has ever come between them. But Ellie, the chatty one, has ideas about taking different classes than Ida, the quiet, artistic one. And when the girls meet a boy named Arne, both are interested. He chooses Ida — a surprise to both Ellie and Ida — and it complicates everything. The jealous feelings Ellie has set her on a dangerous path. The girls father is still suffering from PTSD from his time in World War II, and his problems put terrible pressure on the entire family.||Author Joyce Moyer Hostetter has written a rich, complex addition to her Baker’s Mountain series. She transports readers to the small town of Hickory, North Carolina in the 1950s with her heartfelt storytelling, realistically flawed and relatable characters, exceptional historical research, and clean, clear writing. For readers who have already discovered the Baker’s Mountain books, this will be a very welcome addition. For new readers, this book stands well on its own and will undoubtedly send them looking for more books in the series.
October 8, 2018
DRIVE: A Review and Two Giveaways!
Congratulations to Clara Gillow Clark and Dorothy Price who won the downloadable version of Eyes on the Prize from last week's blog.
The night that I stayed up late to finish reading Joyce Hostetter's fourth book in the Bakers Mountain Stories series, DRIVE (Calkins Creek, 2018), I texted Joyce: "This is going to be a hard book to review. There are too many wonderful things to say about it. Somehow you're able to catch the heart of emotions so well. I'm still crying."
The funny thing is that I almost didn't read the book. I'd read several drafts and thought that I knew the story. Boy, was I wrong!
After all the brainstorming, outlining, and drafting that I'd read, Joyce added layers of characterization, sensory details, and plot points that deepened the story. Having read those earlier drafts, I look back and see how she added flesh to the bones of her story--and I got to see a book develop and grow.
One other interesting background note. When Joyce was brainstorming DRIVE, I had just given up writing Half-Truths from two points-of-view. I told Joyce of my struggles to make each character act and sound differently from the other. There's no mistake: Joyce pulls this feat off beautifully. This is a story of twin sisters vying to hold onto their sisterhood at a time when they're growing up and apart.
REVIEW
PROLOGUE- Ellie
Mommy says Ida was born ten whole minutes ahead
of me
and I spent the first years following after her,
doing what she did
and trying to be as good as she was.
Then, when Daddy came home from war
with hurts we couldn't see
and moods he couldn't predict,
the uncertainty hit Ida hardest of all.
She pulled back like a turtle inside its shell,
slowing down while I sped up.
I soon realized I liked running ahead,
hearing people cheer for me.
But sometimes, it was Ida they'd be bragging on,
And when they did,
I always felt that I was losing.
Life became a competition that one of us had to win.
And I was determined that the winner would be me. (p. 5)
********
Competition. This theme pervades the book as Ellie and Ida prepare to enter their first year of high school. As the reader meets the girls, we see how Ellie thinks she's not as good as Ida and aches for a normal family:
I wanted a father who didn't get frazzled over a bad dream or loud noises. And a mother who wasn't always aching over her husband. I didn't actually want another family; I just needed to not be embarrassed by the one I had. (p.28)
Ida, who describes herself as the quiet one, avoids the spotlight and feels as if Ellie has the drive to succeed but she doesn't.
...I stared at the red velvet curtain on the stage and thought how I never got to pull it open and shut. It was the only job I ever wanted in any play we ever did. But thanks to being a twin, I almost always had to be out front, doing something cute with Ellie and feeling like a country bumpkin in the shadow of a movie star. (p.29)
I loved seeing the sisters from each other's POV. This is Ida talking about their different reactions to their father:
Ellie wasn't scared of Daddy the way I was. She was more like Ann Fay. Bold. Always acting like there was no mountain so tall she couldn't climb it. No race so fast she couldn't win it. And no daddy so mean she couldn't charm him. (p.42)
In this section, Ellie thinks about taking Latin in school.
Ida wouldn't want me to because then we wouldn't have all our classes together. But that also meant I wouldn't always be compared to her. I could have a class that was all my own. A hard one that she couldn't show me up in. (P.59)
Ida feels lost and shy in their new school but Arnie, a fellow freshman, reaches out to her. Ellie who is used to being the strong twin, sees Ida with Arnie and suddenly realizes that Ida might not need her anymore. What's worse is that Ellie has a huge crush on Arnie. This conflict leads to more tension and misunderstanding between the sisters.
Throughout the book the word drive is used in a number of ways. One of the plot threads is Ellie's passion for racing and the Hickory Motor Speedway. Whereas Ida can't stand the noise and grit of the races, Ellie thrives on the excitement and exhilaration of watching the cars zoom around the track. Unfortunately, this love for a thrilling adventure leads to a devastating accident. Without a spoiler, let me simply say that Ida is the only one who can bring Ellie out of the no-man's land of her near-death injury.
Joyce interlaces history throughout this skillfully written story. The 1952 presidential election, the threat of communism, and the Korean conflict are all important backdrops to the drama taking place in the little town of Hickory.
But that's not what made me tear up. Forgiveness, love, character growth, individual accomplishments against high stakes--all of these made me root for both Ida and Ellie, as I'm sure you will too. Although written for the upper middle grade reader, adults will also resonate with the coming-of-age theme interwoven into DRIVE.
As I told Joyce, I'm a lot like Ellie. I think many of us will see a little bit of ourselves in the two sisters. And isn't that what a great book is about?
*******
EPILOGUE- Ida
After Daddy came home from war
with wounds we couldn't see
and moods he couldn't predict,
I pulled back and let Ellie take the lead.
I didn't mind so much if she wanted to run on past
and steal the show from me.
I didn't need to be seen or heard the way she did.
Art was my voice.
But then in her race to be first
Ellie crashed
and I had to go around her--
to face scary unknowns
and accept good things that came my way.
I think we both learned
that life is not a race with one of us winning
and the other losing.
We can drive on our own separate tracks
without competing.
And when we do
We'll each come out a winner. (p. 342)
GIVEAWAY
Since so many of Joyce's fans read my blog, Boyds Mills Press kindly agreed to give away TWO copies of DRIVE. Leave me a comment by October 11 with your email address if you are new to my blog (www.carolbaldwinblog.blogspot.com). If you want additional chances to win, share this on social media or follow my blog and I'll add your name twice to the hat--but make sure you tell me what you did.
Congratulations to Clara Gillow Clark and Dorothy Price who won the downloadable version of Eyes on the Prize from last week's blog.
The night that I stayed up late to finish reading Joyce Hostetter's fourth book in the Bakers Mountain Stories series, DRIVE (Calkins Creek, 2018), I texted Joyce: "This is going to be a hard book to review. There are too many wonderful things to say about it. Somehow you're able to catch the heart of emotions so well. I'm still crying."
The funny thing is that I almost didn't read the book. I'd read several drafts and thought that I knew the story. Boy, was I wrong!
After all the brainstorming, outlining, and drafting that I'd read, Joyce added layers of characterization, sensory details, and plot points that deepened the story. Having read those earlier drafts, I look back and see how she added flesh to the bones of her story--and I got to see a book develop and grow.
One other interesting background note. When Joyce was brainstorming DRIVE, I had just given up writing Half-Truths from two points-of-view. I told Joyce of my struggles to make each character act and sound differently from the other. There's no mistake: Joyce pulls this feat off beautifully. This is a story of twin sisters vying to hold onto their sisterhood at a time when they're growing up and apart.
REVIEW
PROLOGUE- Ellie
Mommy says Ida was born ten whole minutes ahead
of me
and I spent the first years following after her,
doing what she did
and trying to be as good as she was.
Then, when Daddy came home from war
with hurts we couldn't see
and moods he couldn't predict,
the uncertainty hit Ida hardest of all.
She pulled back like a turtle inside its shell,
slowing down while I sped up.
I soon realized I liked running ahead,
hearing people cheer for me.
But sometimes, it was Ida they'd be bragging on,
And when they did,
I always felt that I was losing.
Life became a competition that one of us had to win.
And I was determined that the winner would be me. (p. 5)
********
Competition. This theme pervades the book as Ellie and Ida prepare to enter their first year of high school. As the reader meets the girls, we see how Ellie thinks she's not as good as Ida and aches for a normal family:
I wanted a father who didn't get frazzled over a bad dream or loud noises. And a mother who wasn't always aching over her husband. I didn't actually want another family; I just needed to not be embarrassed by the one I had. (p.28)
Ida, who describes herself as the quiet one, avoids the spotlight and feels as if Ellie has the drive to succeed but she doesn't.
...I stared at the red velvet curtain on the stage and thought how I never got to pull it open and shut. It was the only job I ever wanted in any play we ever did. But thanks to being a twin, I almost always had to be out front, doing something cute with Ellie and feeling like a country bumpkin in the shadow of a movie star. (p.29)
I loved seeing the sisters from each other's POV. This is Ida talking about their different reactions to their father:
Ellie wasn't scared of Daddy the way I was. She was more like Ann Fay. Bold. Always acting like there was no mountain so tall she couldn't climb it. No race so fast she couldn't win it. And no daddy so mean she couldn't charm him. (p.42)
In this section, Ellie thinks about taking Latin in school.
Ida wouldn't want me to because then we wouldn't have all our classes together. But that also meant I wouldn't always be compared to her. I could have a class that was all my own. A hard one that she couldn't show me up in. (P.59)
Ida feels lost and shy in their new school but Arnie, a fellow freshman, reaches out to her. Ellie who is used to being the strong twin, sees Ida with Arnie and suddenly realizes that Ida might not need her anymore. What's worse is that Ellie has a huge crush on Arnie. This conflict leads to more tension and misunderstanding between the sisters.
Throughout the book the word drive is used in a number of ways. One of the plot threads is Ellie's passion for racing and the Hickory Motor Speedway. Whereas Ida can't stand the noise and grit of the races, Ellie thrives on the excitement and exhilaration of watching the cars zoom around the track. Unfortunately, this love for a thrilling adventure leads to a devastating accident. Without a spoiler, let me simply say that Ida is the only one who can bring Ellie out of the no-man's land of her near-death injury.
Joyce interlaces history throughout this skillfully written story. The 1952 presidential election, the threat of communism, and the Korean conflict are all important backdrops to the drama taking place in the little town of Hickory.
But that's not what made me tear up. Forgiveness, love, character growth, individual accomplishments against high stakes--all of these made me root for both Ida and Ellie, as I'm sure you will too. Although written for the upper middle grade reader, adults will also resonate with the coming-of-age theme interwoven into DRIVE.
As I told Joyce, I'm a lot like Ellie. I think many of us will see a little bit of ourselves in the two sisters. And isn't that what a great book is about?
*******
EPILOGUE- Ida
After Daddy came home from war
with wounds we couldn't see
and moods he couldn't predict,
I pulled back and let Ellie take the lead.
I didn't mind so much if she wanted to run on past
and steal the show from me.
I didn't need to be seen or heard the way she did.
Art was my voice.
But then in her race to be first
Ellie crashed
and I had to go around her--
to face scary unknowns
and accept good things that came my way.
I think we both learned
that life is not a race with one of us winning
and the other losing.
We can drive on our own separate tracks
without competing.
And when we do
We'll each come out a winner. (p. 342)
GIVEAWAY
Since so many of Joyce's fans read my blog, Boyds Mills Press kindly agreed to give away TWO copies of DRIVE. Leave me a comment by October 11 with your email address if you are new to my blog (www.carolbaldwinblog.blogspot.com). If you want additional chances to win, share this on social media or follow my blog and I'll add your name twice to the hat--but make sure you tell me what you did.
November 11, 2025
I wanted to read this because the synopsis explained how a character battles PTSD. As someone who suffers from PTSD, I was intrigued to connect to this story. Instead, I had no idea how much of an effort I would have to force myself to use to make it to the next page. The characters were annoying. Ann Fay was stuck up, Ellie was impetuous, loud, impulsive, and dramatic, Ida was bland, and Jackie was just annoying. None of the characters even tried to understand the father's PTSD. They couldn't comprehend why he couldn't get out of bed and how loud noises scared him. They refused to put themselves in his shoes and imagine what he went through in WWII. What he needed was respect and comfort. Not tantrums, disrespect, and hostility. This novel was too long for a juvenile book in my opinion, especially since it was slow moving and filled with drama.
September 3, 2021
This was by far one of my favorite books in the series. I love that all the books have spotlights on different people. I also really like that Ann Fay and Junior got married. Reda it if you haven't, and reccommened it to others.
January 30, 2019
It is definitely worth reading! When Ida Honeycutt and Ellie Honeycutt both fall for the very same charming boy and classmate.
July 13, 2023
Cute first person account of school age girls living life.
September 8, 2025
I loved it! It’s book for teens as well as adults that want light reading. We are NASCAR fans and loved the bits about Ned Jarrett.
October 20, 2018
Yes they are worth buying!!!
I loved each story so much i couldn't sIt for the next story. Keep us going with the little brothers story.
I loved each story so much i couldn't sIt for the next story. Keep us going with the little brothers story.
Want to read
January 7, 2019The book drive shows the strong relationship between two sisters who dearly love each other. Mrs.Hostetter Illusatarates the race track and shapes the characters personality in a way that makes it hard to predict the characters feelings and or actions.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews