Book Review: Can't Get There from Here

Can't Get There from Here by Todd Strasser

SUMMARY: Her street name is Maybe. She lives with a tribe of homeless teens--runaways and throwaways, kids who have no place to go other than the cold city streets, and no family except for one another. Abused, abandoned, and forgotten, they struggle against the cold, hunger, and constant danger. With the frigid winds of January comes a new girl: Tears, a twelve-year-old whose mother doesn't believe her stepfather abuses her. As the other kids start to disappear--victims of violence, addiction, and exposure--Maybe tries to help Tears get off the streets...if it's not already too late. (from the inside flap)

OPINION: This book is a short and powerful discussion of teen homelessness. This is more of a problem than you might think. Many teens each year run away from foster care, abusive parents, and other negletful adults. Where do they end up? On the streets or in the underground economy of sex and drugs. Can't Get There from Here is not graphic in its discussion, but it does deal with these serious issues in a straigtforward manner. Running away from home may seem like a solution to family problems, but it creates a whole other set of troubles. I recommend this book for those of you who like their realistic fiction on the tough and gritty side.