What do you think?
Rate this book
Guitar Boy
Travis Tacey doesn't have it his mom's in the hospital suffering from brain trauma after a terrible car accident, and his father has lost his good sense in the aftermath and kicked him out. Homeless, penniless, and only fourteen years old, Travis tries to make money off of his singing and guitar playing skills. But when his beloved guitar―a family heirloom―is stolen, Travis grows desperate. By a stroke of luck, he gets a job helping a guitar maker. Through Travis's love of music, his devotion to his family, and the kindness of strangers, he begins to find his way in the world. But how will he keep his family together?
272 pages, Hardcover
First published September 14, 2010
13 people are currently reading
200 people want to read
About the author
Mary Jane Auch
48 books69 followersMary Jane Auch also writes as MJ Auch.
The thought of becoming a writer never occurred to MJ Auch as a child. Her only literary efforts in those days were the plays which she and her girlfriend, Noreen, wrote for their marionettes. They produced these extravaganzas in Noreen’s garage and organized the neighborhood boys into a sales force to sell tickets and refreshments.
Summer visits to both of MJ’s grandmothers led to her fascination with chickens. One grandmother had a small backyard flock and the other grandmother and two bachelor uncles had a large farm that supplied eggs to half of Long Island. MJ learned that a flock of chickens had almost the same range of personalities that could be found in a classroom, from the quiet, shy chicken to the big bully.
MJ loved books and read constantly. She wrote stories, drawn in comic book style with speech balloons for the dialog. Her interest in drawing continued through high school, and she went on to become an art major at Skidmore College. After graduation, MJ headed for New York City to seek fame and fortune, but after a year of designing prints for men's pajamas, she decided she wanted to do something more meaningful with her life. She enrolled in the Occupational Therapy program at Columbia University, which led to some wonderful years of working in a children's hospital near Hartford, Connecticut.
On a brief stop home to visit her parents before transferring to a new job in Denver, she met Herm Auch, a graphic artist and editorial cartoonist for the Rochester newspaper. It was love at first sight, and MJ never made it to Denver. They were married in 1967 and within a few years had produced a daughter, Katrin and a son, Ian. They moved from the city to a small farm, complete with chickens, ducks, and geese. Armed with a huge collection of Mother Earth News and absolutely no practical experience, they tackled farm life with gusto, gaining much comedy material for books MJ’s future books.
As the children grew older, MJ began to look for work in her original field of art. Like Jenna's mother in Mom Is Dating Weird Wayne, she had a brief stint as a “zit zapper” at a school picture factory. Then she started illustrating for Pennywhistle Press, a national children's newspaper, and this sparked her interest in illustrating children’s books.
In the summer of 1984, MJ took a week-long children's writing conference on Cape Cod. She tried to write a picture book manuscript to take to the conference, but instead found herself writing a middle-grade novel. When her instructor, Natalie Babbitt, told of starting out as an artist and finding she could paint better pictures with words, something clicked. MJ finally knew that she wanted to a writer.
She started sending manuscripts to publishers, writing four full-length novels before she sold the first one. Then she sold a second book to another publisher that same week. It had taken two years and thirteen rejections, but MJ had finally reached her goal!mShe continued writing books for older kids and abandoned her dream of illustrating for a while. Then, after nine books, she wrote and illustrated The Easter Egg Farm. This set in motion a series of picture books featuring poultry involved in the arts.
The Auchs have now become a family of artists. Their children are grown and pursuing art careers of their own. Kat, a graphic artist, is now working as Associate Art Director for Scrapbook Answers Magazine in San Francisco. Ian has been a graphic artist and 3-D animator and is now Assistant New Media Editor for the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle newspaper. Ian is also a metal artist and created the chicken-sized beauty parlor chair for [b:Beauty and the Beaks|1918127|Beaut
The thought of becoming a writer never occurred to MJ Auch as a child. Her only literary efforts in those days were the plays which she and her girlfriend, Noreen, wrote for their marionettes. They produced these extravaganzas in Noreen’s garage and organized the neighborhood boys into a sales force to sell tickets and refreshments.
Summer visits to both of MJ’s grandmothers led to her fascination with chickens. One grandmother had a small backyard flock and the other grandmother and two bachelor uncles had a large farm that supplied eggs to half of Long Island. MJ learned that a flock of chickens had almost the same range of personalities that could be found in a classroom, from the quiet, shy chicken to the big bully.
MJ loved books and read constantly. She wrote stories, drawn in comic book style with speech balloons for the dialog. Her interest in drawing continued through high school, and she went on to become an art major at Skidmore College. After graduation, MJ headed for New York City to seek fame and fortune, but after a year of designing prints for men's pajamas, she decided she wanted to do something more meaningful with her life. She enrolled in the Occupational Therapy program at Columbia University, which led to some wonderful years of working in a children's hospital near Hartford, Connecticut.
On a brief stop home to visit her parents before transferring to a new job in Denver, she met Herm Auch, a graphic artist and editorial cartoonist for the Rochester newspaper. It was love at first sight, and MJ never made it to Denver. They were married in 1967 and within a few years had produced a daughter, Katrin and a son, Ian. They moved from the city to a small farm, complete with chickens, ducks, and geese. Armed with a huge collection of Mother Earth News and absolutely no practical experience, they tackled farm life with gusto, gaining much comedy material for books MJ’s future books.
As the children grew older, MJ began to look for work in her original field of art. Like Jenna's mother in Mom Is Dating Weird Wayne, she had a brief stint as a “zit zapper” at a school picture factory. Then she started illustrating for Pennywhistle Press, a national children's newspaper, and this sparked her interest in illustrating children’s books.
In the summer of 1984, MJ took a week-long children's writing conference on Cape Cod. She tried to write a picture book manuscript to take to the conference, but instead found herself writing a middle-grade novel. When her instructor, Natalie Babbitt, told of starting out as an artist and finding she could paint better pictures with words, something clicked. MJ finally knew that she wanted to a writer.
She started sending manuscripts to publishers, writing four full-length novels before she sold the first one. Then she sold a second book to another publisher that same week. It had taken two years and thirteen rejections, but MJ had finally reached her goal!mShe continued writing books for older kids and abandoned her dream of illustrating for a while. Then, after nine books, she wrote and illustrated The Easter Egg Farm. This set in motion a series of picture books featuring poultry involved in the arts.
The Auchs have now become a family of artists. Their children are grown and pursuing art careers of their own. Kat, a graphic artist, is now working as Associate Art Director for Scrapbook Answers Magazine in San Francisco. Ian has been a graphic artist and 3-D animator and is now Assistant New Media Editor for the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle newspaper. Ian is also a metal artist and created the chicken-sized beauty parlor chair for [b:Beauty and the Beaks|1918127|Beaut
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
June 30, 2011
Travis's mom has been in a bad accident and is laying in the hospital with brain damage. His father spirals out of control, due to his grief. The father loses his job and kicks fourteen-year old Travis out of the house. Travis leaves with too-big shoes, the clothes on his back, and his great-great-great grandfather's guitar.
Things I liked about this book: the Adirondacks setting, the glimpse into a community of music-minded friends, the basic decency of the hero.
Things I did not like: The lack of the back story. Even if things get out of control because of the accident, why was the family so poor and backward before the accident? The father works, the mother works at the prison (decent wages), yet the kids have never had new clothes. Why? And I found it immensely unbelievable that Travis could have lived in the same house for 14 years, and yet has never been to a different town in the area. He's never seen a vista of mountains?? And he wanders around, on foot, completely lost, for days. He's not in the woods-- he can't find his way around the roads right near his house? The whole family situation seemed very unbelievable.
It was interesting to read a little bit about guitar-making, including a poem about the wood in the guitars finally finding a voice after growing for a hundred years.
Things I liked about this book: the Adirondacks setting, the glimpse into a community of music-minded friends, the basic decency of the hero.
Things I did not like: The lack of the back story. Even if things get out of control because of the accident, why was the family so poor and backward before the accident? The father works, the mother works at the prison (decent wages), yet the kids have never had new clothes. Why? And I found it immensely unbelievable that Travis could have lived in the same house for 14 years, and yet has never been to a different town in the area. He's never seen a vista of mountains?? And he wanders around, on foot, completely lost, for days. He's not in the woods-- he can't find his way around the roads right near his house? The whole family situation seemed very unbelievable.
It was interesting to read a little bit about guitar-making, including a poem about the wood in the guitars finally finding a voice after growing for a hundred years.
August 10, 2013
I feel really bad for the main character because his dad was a maniac and was always screaming at him. And his mother was in the hospital after an accident with brain trauma. Travis was a really strong character.
April 5, 2013
Oh my gosh this book is amazing! Can someone please give me amnesia so I can enjoy it all over again? If your a fan of music you will totally dig this book.
October 2, 2017
This book was good. It definetly changed my perspective on life and everything I have. It made me super thankful for a good family!
February 2, 2014
When I added "Guitar Boy" to my TBR pile, I remember thinking that it sounded more like a middle grade novel than a YA. That idea might have stemmed from the summary, or the knowledge that the last novel I read by M.J. Auch was one I read at fourteen and pulled from the MG section in the library. Whatever the intended audience, I finished "Guitar Boy" in a day and loved every minute of it.
Travis is a fourteen year old guitar player whose life has been turned upside down in the wake of his mother's car accident and subsequent injuries. His father is trying and failing to run the household and keep his five children fed, and a string of bad decisions leads to him throwing Travis out of the house. Travis ends up unofficially apprenticed to a local guitar-maker while he attempts to piece his life and his family back together.
For an incredibly simple premise, this story had so much heart and so much personality. It wasn't as much about music as it was about connection--to the family you're born with and the family you choose. The people Travis meets when he's isolated from everything he knows become as much a family to him as the one he's left behind, and I loved watching those bonds strengthen as the story progresses. All of the characters in "Guitar Boy" felt authentic, like if you pulled off the interstate at some nowhere town in the Adirondacks you might encounter any of them.
Every one of the subplots tied neatly together, from the local festival Travis helps the guitar-maker prepare for, to Travis's own missing family heirloom guitar, to his attempts to reach his mother. The links in the overall chain of events were believable and heart-wrenching and ultimately hopeful.
"Guitar Boy" is the kind of book that I want to avoid talking about too specifically, because no amount of summarizing will even begin to do the story justice. If you like quieter stories with great character development and a happier ending than you might have dared to hope for, definitely give this one a read.
Travis is a fourteen year old guitar player whose life has been turned upside down in the wake of his mother's car accident and subsequent injuries. His father is trying and failing to run the household and keep his five children fed, and a string of bad decisions leads to him throwing Travis out of the house. Travis ends up unofficially apprenticed to a local guitar-maker while he attempts to piece his life and his family back together.
For an incredibly simple premise, this story had so much heart and so much personality. It wasn't as much about music as it was about connection--to the family you're born with and the family you choose. The people Travis meets when he's isolated from everything he knows become as much a family to him as the one he's left behind, and I loved watching those bonds strengthen as the story progresses. All of the characters in "Guitar Boy" felt authentic, like if you pulled off the interstate at some nowhere town in the Adirondacks you might encounter any of them.
Every one of the subplots tied neatly together, from the local festival Travis helps the guitar-maker prepare for, to Travis's own missing family heirloom guitar, to his attempts to reach his mother. The links in the overall chain of events were believable and heart-wrenching and ultimately hopeful.
"Guitar Boy" is the kind of book that I want to avoid talking about too specifically, because no amount of summarizing will even begin to do the story justice. If you like quieter stories with great character development and a happier ending than you might have dared to hope for, definitely give this one a read.
February 28, 2011
2.5 stars
Ever since their mother was seriously injured in a car accident, life hasn’t been easy for fourteen-year-old Travis and his brothers and sisters. June, the oldest, has already quit school in order to care for her younger brothers and sisters. When their father loses his job, Travis is forced to quit school so that he can earn money to help support the family. Travis’s mother is in a nursing home, where she doesn’t seem to be getting the help that she needs for rehabilitation. One night Travis and his father have a terrible argument, and his father kicks him out of the house. Travis sets out alone with nothing but the clothes on his back, a broken bicycle and a guitar that has been in his mother’s family for generations. With nowhere else to go, Travis decides to seek out a local guitar maker in hopes that he will be able to repair the old guitar and possibly give him work. Along the way Travis accepts a ride from a stranger, and the man steals the guitar, which is Travis’s only connection to his mother, whose brain trauma has made her almost unrecognizable to her children. He must find a way to get the guitar back, help his mother, and reconcile with his father and the rest of the family.
Guitar Boy is set in the Adirondack Mountains of New York, and the local color that the author creates in part through the emphasis on local music and guitar picking is one aspect of the novel that makes it somewhat unique in young adult literature. Travis is a likable main character, and his father is a standard-issue villain throughout most of the book. The secondary characters are pretty well fleshed out but not completely realistic. The plot also strains credibility at times, and the resolution is a little too quick and tidy; however, it may satisfy readers who hope for a happy ending.
Ever since their mother was seriously injured in a car accident, life hasn’t been easy for fourteen-year-old Travis and his brothers and sisters. June, the oldest, has already quit school in order to care for her younger brothers and sisters. When their father loses his job, Travis is forced to quit school so that he can earn money to help support the family. Travis’s mother is in a nursing home, where she doesn’t seem to be getting the help that she needs for rehabilitation. One night Travis and his father have a terrible argument, and his father kicks him out of the house. Travis sets out alone with nothing but the clothes on his back, a broken bicycle and a guitar that has been in his mother’s family for generations. With nowhere else to go, Travis decides to seek out a local guitar maker in hopes that he will be able to repair the old guitar and possibly give him work. Along the way Travis accepts a ride from a stranger, and the man steals the guitar, which is Travis’s only connection to his mother, whose brain trauma has made her almost unrecognizable to her children. He must find a way to get the guitar back, help his mother, and reconcile with his father and the rest of the family.
Guitar Boy is set in the Adirondack Mountains of New York, and the local color that the author creates in part through the emphasis on local music and guitar picking is one aspect of the novel that makes it somewhat unique in young adult literature. Travis is a likable main character, and his father is a standard-issue villain throughout most of the book. The secondary characters are pretty well fleshed out but not completely realistic. The plot also strains credibility at times, and the resolution is a little too quick and tidy; however, it may satisfy readers who hope for a happy ending.
July 5, 2014
Have you ever known what it’s like to be on your own as a child? Do you know what it’s like to be extremely mad at a parent? Travis knows what it’s like. His mother has just gotten into a car accident and is now in the hospital. Now he is left with his father and four siblings. Their father is having a tough time supporting his family. He’s even taken his daughter out of school so she would take care of her siblings. Now his father wants Travis to quit school and make money to support his family.
Travis doesn’t like this because his father doesn’t have a job and now he’s making Travis work instead of him. After Travis quits his job, his father kicks him out of the house. “I said, get out!” (pg. 61) He’s now trying to live on his own. How can he go home now that his father is mad at him? In “Guitar Boy” by MJ Auch, Travis is broke and only has one thing, his guitar. He tries to make a living with his singing and his music playing, but this is hard when you are homeless.
I give this book a four star rating for the amazingness of this book. I recommend this to any middle schooler who loves realistic fiction.
Travis doesn’t like this because his father doesn’t have a job and now he’s making Travis work instead of him. After Travis quits his job, his father kicks him out of the house. “I said, get out!” (pg. 61) He’s now trying to live on his own. How can he go home now that his father is mad at him? In “Guitar Boy” by MJ Auch, Travis is broke and only has one thing, his guitar. He tries to make a living with his singing and his music playing, but this is hard when you are homeless.
I give this book a four star rating for the amazingness of this book. I recommend this to any middle schooler who loves realistic fiction.
March 7, 2011
I was close to giving up on Guitar Boy after 20 pages or so. The characters hadn't said or done anything remotely novel or meaningful. I felt like I knew exactly where the book was heading (boy finds himself through music), mapping out the plot in my head. I was bored.
Well, I was about half wrong. The characters stayed boring, lifeless. They say and do things because we know they will--they're overly kind, overly harsh, etc.
But the plot takes a nice turn when protagonist Travis is kicked out of his home after an accident leaves his mom brain-damaged and his father plot-advancingly mean.
What I smelled out as a boring book about a boy finding himself through music turned out to be a about a boy gaining a little independence in the face of trouble. That's what kept me reading to the end. There are some mixed messages concerning familial duty, and Travis's new set of adult friends seem irresponsibly perfect. But I can see this as an enjoyable read for a young adult looking for a relaxing book, where no one has to fight to the death or anything.
Well, I was about half wrong. The characters stayed boring, lifeless. They say and do things because we know they will--they're overly kind, overly harsh, etc.
But the plot takes a nice turn when protagonist Travis is kicked out of his home after an accident leaves his mom brain-damaged and his father plot-advancingly mean.
What I smelled out as a boring book about a boy finding himself through music turned out to be a about a boy gaining a little independence in the face of trouble. That's what kept me reading to the end. There are some mixed messages concerning familial duty, and Travis's new set of adult friends seem irresponsibly perfect. But I can see this as an enjoyable read for a young adult looking for a relaxing book, where no one has to fight to the death or anything.
March 18, 2014
Travis Tracey doesn't have your normal teenage boy problems. Bad grades, girl issues, and fitting in aren't really his concern. Instead, he has to worry about things like his recently paralyzed mother, his abusive and cruel father, and supporting his family. After being kicked out of the house by his father after an argument, Travis sets off in the world with only his mother's old guitar, the clothes on his back, and a few dollars. After only a couple days in the world, everything is going terribly, until Travis befriends a guitar maker and shop owner, Scott McKissack. And for once, things are going okay for Travis, despite being alone and homeless.
Something good about this book was it took turns that I didn't think were going to happen. When i thought one thing was going to happen, the author took it in a completely different direction. However I didn't like how fast the book moved. Like one minute they're in the hospital and the next they're in a diner. I feel like there could have been a little bit more detail put into it. It was still a really good book though.
Something good about this book was it took turns that I didn't think were going to happen. When i thought one thing was going to happen, the author took it in a completely different direction. However I didn't like how fast the book moved. Like one minute they're in the hospital and the next they're in a diner. I feel like there could have been a little bit more detail put into it. It was still a really good book though.
March 26, 2015
This book was very entertaining, but somewhat slow to start. The book certainly picked up speed later on, and made it well worth the wait.
Perhaps the biggest reason I rated this book 4/5 stars instead of 5 was because of Travis himself. I found Travis a very contradictory character, who tended to lash out at people or hide things unnecessarily. That said, it didn't hinder my enjoyment of the book, but it did make me alternate between loving Travis and finding him somewhat grating. The Adirondacks was a very interesting setting for the story, but it also felt somewhat forced. Some of the names seemed very out of place and not at all indigenous to the Adirondacks. Again, just my opinion.
I wanted to give those two complaints first to get them out of the way, because I really loved the book. It was entertaining, and the author's enthusiasm was embedded throughout. It was a lot of fun! I would recommend this book to most anyone who enjoys guitars, but, infinitely more importantly, to someone who needs an uplifting story. I enjoyed it highly.
Perhaps the biggest reason I rated this book 4/5 stars instead of 5 was because of Travis himself. I found Travis a very contradictory character, who tended to lash out at people or hide things unnecessarily. That said, it didn't hinder my enjoyment of the book, but it did make me alternate between loving Travis and finding him somewhat grating. The Adirondacks was a very interesting setting for the story, but it also felt somewhat forced. Some of the names seemed very out of place and not at all indigenous to the Adirondacks. Again, just my opinion.
I wanted to give those two complaints first to get them out of the way, because I really loved the book. It was entertaining, and the author's enthusiasm was embedded throughout. It was a lot of fun! I would recommend this book to most anyone who enjoys guitars, but, infinitely more importantly, to someone who needs an uplifting story. I enjoyed it highly.
June 9, 2013
I enjoyed this book and connected to the young protagonist (Travis) much more than I anticipated. Auch's subject matter a - rural, and fairly poor family in the Adirondacks - are rendered with a vibrancy and innocence that makes it accessible to readers young and old. Travis's mother is nearly killed in a car accident and his father is ill-equipped to deal with these dire circumstances. This sends Travis's entire family, including a brood of young siblings, into a downward spiral. Given this maudlin plot point Auch manages to open new vistas to Travis through music and avoid cliché as she orchestrates the family's "redemption song."
Roots music - the Americana kind built on mandolins, banjos and guitars - created a soundscape as important as the story's landscape. These sounds are audible to the reader even if one does not know the specific songs referenced. One can only hope this will be turned into a modest film with T. Bone Burnett supervising the soundtrack!
Roots music - the Americana kind built on mandolins, banjos and guitars - created a soundscape as important as the story's landscape. These sounds are audible to the reader even if one does not know the specific songs referenced. One can only hope this will be turned into a modest film with T. Bone Burnett supervising the soundtrack!
November 8, 2011
I appreciated the guitar talk throughout the book, but the plot seemed too hard to imagine as being something a person could really experience. Then end of the book threw me for a loop when Travis's dad comes back into play in the last 10 or so pages. A good deal of the story seemed unrealistic, but it was a nice read. When Travis went to visit his mom in the nursing home and she got really excited because of him singing to her and playing guitar, I felt like I was going to melt with joy! It made me really happy to imagine the scene playing out each time he visited her.
It was an alright book. I would not recommend it for people who don't know anything about acoustic guitars or who don't appreciate guitars. If you do play guitar and you are looking for a quick read, this may be a good book for you.
It was an alright book. I would not recommend it for people who don't know anything about acoustic guitars or who don't appreciate guitars. If you do play guitar and you are looking for a quick read, this may be a good book for you.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 25, 2014
Have you ever had a time in your life when nothing is going right? Or you feel like things are never going to get better? Well 14 year old Travis Tacey is going through that right now. After his mom gets in a serious car crash and has been in the hospital for weeks now, nothing is the same at home anymore. His his sister has to quit school to take care of the little kids, his dad loses his job, and now his dad wants Travis to quit school to! Well one day Travis and his dad get into an argument and Travis’s dad kicks him out! All Travis has is an old beat up guitar and some supplies his sister June gave him. Where will Travis go? How will he survive alone? Will his mom ever get better? Will his dad let him come back home? Go on an adventure with Travis Tacey and find out how he will survive by himself. I recommend this book for 5th-8th graders.
January 22, 2012
Travis's family has experienced the tragedy of the mom being in a horrific car accident that leaves her disabled. Without her as the family anchor their lives spin out of control: dad loses his job, June and Travis are forced to drop out of school to help take care of younger siblings and work to bring in money. The tension builds until Travis and his dad have an argument that results in Travis being thrown out of the family. As Travis travels he meeting interesting people and finds that not all people can be trusted. Little by little he builds a new family out of his new employer and his friends. Travis is shocked to find they know more about him than he likes but can they be a permanent family?
April 7, 2014
Have you ever wondered what it’s like to be all on your own? Well Travis Tacey is a fifteen year old boy whose father kicked him out of their home after their mother was in a wreck. After the father kicked Travis out he went to his first resort, the cabin in the woods with his moms guitar. “The tone was wonderful.” (p.114) He was on his own with not very much to live off of. Travis managed to get a bike at a garage sale, but he didn’t have enough money so he sang a few songs to get the bike. After he got the bike he went on a mission to find Scott McKissack's guitar shop. Does he get to make a guitar or find a place to stay? I really enjoyed “Guitar Boy” by MJ Auch and I think you would too. This realistic fiction book would be a great read for grades sixth through eighth.
March 29, 2014
I really liked this book. The characters were like able (well the ones who were supposed to be), the plot was harshly realistic, and the ending was satisfying, but not too neat. It left room for the story and struggle of the characters to continue, but took care of the major issues that needed to be resolved. I definitely appreciated that the plot was unidealized, but still left hope for miracles. At times it was a bit slow and on the verge of too tidy, but these parts of the story led directly into a new problem. I liked the themes of this book too; the healing power of music, community, and the impact of just simple kindness. I'd definitely read more from this author.
March 26, 2011
MJ Auch does a wonderful job of telling the story of Travis Tacey, a fourteen year old boy who lives in the Adirondack Mountains in New York. Travis' mother has a car accident and severe head injury. As a result his father becomes so grief stricken that he cannot function as a bread winner and head of his family of seven. Travis ends up thrown out of his home on on the run with only his mother's guitar for company. On his journey his guitar introduces him to both cruel and kind people. Will he ever be able to go home to his family again?
June 14, 2011
If you are a fan of music, especially stringed instruments associated with American folk music, you will truly appreciate the authenticity Ms. Auch includes in her story of a dysfunctional mountain family. The family is torn apart after the near fatal accident of the mother. The older brother and sister are taken from school by the father to care for the 3 younger children and to help raise money for the family when the father loses his job. This story points out the value of keeping fine arts programs alive in our schools, not only for the students but also for the society itself!
August 13, 2014
I listened to the audiobook, and I LOVED it. The CD version ended with an interview with the author--she explained how her experiences with guitars and as an occupational therapist contributed to the book. Beautiful imagery of the Adirondacks, wonderful character development. Very realistic conflict between a teenaged boy and his father, and poignant description of a mother suffering TBI and learning to speak again through song. No character is perfect, and the ending is not perfect, and all of that made it real.
August 29, 2011
AFter his mother is in a serious car accident, Travis's family begins to fall apart. Things get so bad that his father kicks Travis out of the house after Travis accuses his father of causing the accident. Travis gets a job with a guitar maker and is mentored by several of the old men at the guitar workshop. He glimpses a possible new life and finds the courage eventually to face his old one.
October 13, 2012
Travis's family is crumbling around him after his Mother suffers brain damage in a car crash. When his father kicks him out, Travis thinks Dad's anger will blow over but it doesn't. At fourteen years old, Travis is homeless. When he gets a job with a lutheir (aka, a guitar maker), his luck begins to change. With the help of his new friends, can Travis help his mom recover and begin repairing his family?
September 29, 2013
So pretty much every character in this book found some way to annoy me. By the time you get to the ending you realize it's a pretty sweet (as in kind) book. It's about a guy who gets kicked out and somehow (almost magically) finds a job and starts his new life out. At 14! A lot of things in this book are very unrealistic, but some aren't. I liked it enough but all the guitar lingo I skipped. I mean their is a LOT of guitar talk in here!
September 30, 2012
I picked this up because it is set in the Adirondack mountains, though aside from some driving and harrowing bike riding scenes, this doesn't come into play too much. The ending was tidy and heartwarming, and the plot was well paced, though not always realistic. Not one I would go out of my way to recommend, but definitely a solid read.
May 14, 2014
Guitar boy is a story of survival, courage and self discovery. As the story unfolds you learn how it feels to be alone and the lengths you will go to in order to preserve and overcome challenges. I found the character of Travis' father a bit difficult to understand; however the story itself offers good action. Overall not a bad story!
July 14, 2015
This was an interesting book for me. Having lost a parent, I could relate to Travis somewhat with his mother in a nursing home. It was moving, but somewhat unrealistic. Especially the scene with his dream. but I really did enjoy it.
November 17, 2011
Loved this book at first I was skeptical but in over all it was well-written and very good.
Made me cry but it was worth it, in the end I just simply love it, had very good story to lean on and learned some very interesting things about guitars. :D
WISH LIST MATERIAL!
Made me cry but it was worth it, in the end I just simply love it, had very good story to lean on and learned some very interesting things about guitars. :D
WISH LIST MATERIAL!
March 14, 2013
Another enjoyable little book. I really enjoyed the story of the boy, his family, his guitar, and his new friends. I think that the story has more than one good message that young readers need to hear.
April 19, 2013
This book was one that makes you think about how lucky you are and how good you have it. This book was beautiful, absolutely beautiful. Music lovers: Music heals the heart... you just have to have hope and find something to live for.
June 19, 2013
Travis' mother is in the hospital recovering from a serious accident. His father takes out his frustrations on Travis. Travis can't take it any more and leaves...along with the guitar that belonged to his mother.
January 21, 2015
This turned out to be a really sweet story. While I found the writing a bit young, the story really sold me. The author really knew what she was talking about and it was really interesting to read about guitar making. Really glad I decided to stick with this one.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews