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Summary
Summary
A pair of siblings escapes--along with a Siberian Husky--the strictures of their 1950s industrial Ohio town on the adventure of a lifetime.
Talented high-school senior Donna Lane yearns to leave her Midwestern home in pursuit of a career in design, but she feels obligated to stay and care for her helpless father and her younger brother, Will. In fragile health and obsessed with the television show Sergeant Striker and the Alaskan Wild, Will's dearest companion is a mute Siberian Husky named Trusty. The arrival of two outsiders inspires Donna to consider her dreams anew. Then Will falls sick, and Donna packs up their yellow convertible--with Will, Trusty, and a road atlas--and sets off for the Alaskan Territory. A portrait of a singular American moment, My One Square Inch of Alaska is a moving tale of exploration and love--human and canine--that dares to believe the impossible.
Author Notes
Sharon Short lives with her husband and two daughters in Centerville, Ohio.
Reviews (2)
Publisher's Weekly Review
It's 1953 and high-school senior Donna Lane is desperate to get out of Groverton, Ohio. With a bitter grandmother, an alcoholic father, and a long-dead mother, there's little reason to stay besides her brother Will, a 10-year-old obsessed with collecting cereal box tops in order to acquire a deed for one square inch of land in the Alaska Territory. Sneaking tips while working at her grandmother's diner and secretly modeling for controversial art teacher Mr. Cahill, Donna saves to fulfill her dreams of becoming a fashion designer in New York City, hopeful her brother will be strong enough to stand up to their father without her. But Donna meets the new boy in town-handsome, influential, and rich Jimmy Denton, who can give her the life she never had, making it harder to escape. When Will falls ill, he becomes determined to take his dog to see his plot in Alaska and Donna realizes others have dreams of seeing the world outside of Groverton. Mystery writer Short (Death By Deep Dish Pie) wonderfully captures the feel of small-town 1950s, a young woman's yearning for freedom, and her struggle to deal with how small, seemingly innocuous choices have life-changing consequences. (Feb.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Library Journal Review
In the span of just two months, Donna Lane's life is flipped over. It's early September 1953, and she's a high school senior in a small Ohio town struggling to hold her family together. Her father is still reeling from the loss of her mother years earlier, and her younger brother, Will, has odd fainting spells. But they carry on, Donna dreaming of being a fashion designer while Will is determined to get a deed to one inch of Alaska territory through a radio promotion. Starting with the rescue of a mistreated husky, the siblings are changed by encounters with a new art teacher and a healer named MayJune. Then a diagnosis of leukemia propels them to pursue Will's piece of Alaska and to uncover their mother's story. Verdict A cast of colorful but believable characters bring freshness and vitality to this bittersweet coming-of-age story. Book clubs and readers of all ages, from teens to their grandmothers, will identify with the protagonists' quest to be true to themselves.-Jan Blodgett, Davidson Coll. Lib., NC (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
