Tomorrow, the River

by Dianne E. Gray

With a long list of her mother’s dos and don’ts swirling in her head, and with a ticket that will get her only halfway home at the end of summer, fourteen-year-old Megan Barnett boards the eastbound train. Her destination, the Mississippi River at Burlington, Iowa, is twenty-four hours and a host of unfamiliar seatmates away. The most pleasant of these characters is Horace, an engineering student whose passion for newspapers, combined with a sharp curve of the tracks, land him nearly in Megan’s lap.

The parade of interesting strangers—some of whom aren’t what they seem— doesn’t end with Megan’s arrival in Burlington, where she joins her sister’s family on the riverboat, the Oh My. River travel, as Megan quickly learns, is fraught with danger, both on the water and off. A keen eye, for seeing beneath the surface of things, can make all the difference.

Leaving a trail of discarded rules and newspaper headlines in her wake, Megan takes on the river and reaps its rewards.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Fiction, Historical

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Olivia Lyndaker · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is so good! It's so sweat, and there is nothing inappropriate in it.

[Art · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ms. Gray covered a young woman who leaves her mother of rules and stays w/her older sister, Husband and son on a River boat called the "Oh My".
She gets a lesson about people and human nature on her trip on the railroad. She thens learns about photography and about her self worth in life.
I really liked this book because it kept me engaged.

[Dianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, it earns me a young adult stamp for our Public Library's Summer Reading program.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Her daughter lives in town; the author is an hour south of us, and as a person who wants to support Local more often, of course I bought this book for my YA Lit-loving mother-in-law for Christmas and promptly borrowed it when she was done.

The writing was good--it wasn't gorgeous, but good--and thus, it is the story itself that rose this book up to 4/5 stars for me (generally, as a poetry reader, I'm more keen to language that stuns me, with plot a secondary consideration). Congratulations, Dianne E. Gray; I know it's an often recommended title at our local book store, which is a high compliment indeed.

[Marissa]

With a long list of her mother's dos and don'ts swirling in her head, and with that ticket will get her only halfway home at the end of sdummer, fourteen-year-old Megan Barnett boards the eastbound train. Her destination, the mississippi river at Burlington, Iowa is twenty-four hours and host of unfamiliar seatmates away. The most pleasant of these characters us Horace an engineering student whose passion for newspaper as well as a sharp curve of the tracks, lands him nearly in Megans lap. To find out what happens in the rest of this story I Highly suggest you read it.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up because I was looking for a YA book with a strong female character. The store clerk steered me the right way. It's a darling book, kept me up late to finish it. Megan, the hero of the story, has just the right mixture of confidence and self doubt to be lovable. Plus, I love historical novels, especially ones that take place in the Midwest -- most of the action of this one happens on a riverboat traveling up the Mississippi between Missouri and Minnesota.

[Aedan78 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I usually don't like historic fiction, but this one was fun. It told the story of a young girl going away from home for the first time. What I liked best was the fact that the story was told both from the main character's perspective and from newspaper clippings that let the reader know more than the main character. It was cute, but not great (due to a slightly predictable plot & a slow start).

[Ruie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it of course because it takes places on the Mississippi River. I loved the historical fiction aspect. Due to its content I think it would make a great choice for the SSYRA for 6-8 grade. It was fun and light read, but interesting at the same time. Megan, the main character, seemed naive but she was only 14 and it was 1896 so my perspective is possibly jaded on this point. Kids who like historical fiction will enjoy this book.

[Mel Raschke]

Megan Barnett is about to have an Adventure. She is leaving home (a Nebraska farm) to live with her sister on a riverboat for the summer.
She gets on the east-bound train, and her transformation begins. She talks to strangers; she, who has a gift of "seeing" learns that things, especially people, aren't always what they seem. She has harrowing experiences, exhilirating experiences, and life-view changing experiences.

[Madeline · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book because I thought it would be set in Iowa more then it was. It was really boring and it never really ended. It left a lot of loose ends and it didn't give you time to get into one character before they had moved on never to see that person again. Boring and just not really my thing.

[Tessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

I loved this book when I was a kid, partly because it takes place in the Midwest (and I love books that take place here) and partly because it was about a riverboat which I found endlessly fascinating. It's a bit more simplistic than I remember but I still loved reading it--especially the parts relating to the river and the clamming.

[Chrisanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A whimsical little book that winds slowly, and enjoyably, forward much like a riverboat. Much better than her first book, this is a fun little jaunt that ends up in a humorous and surprising place, but not too surprising. It's like turning a gray page to find a sunset behind it.

[Kathy Erskine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can't say I heard much press about this one but it's REALLY well done. Informative and interesting, but also a good story and great characters.

[Clare D' Lune · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. It was one of the nice, rather calm books that I just feel like reading sometimes... : )

[Carrine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good. Definately a keeper!

[Valerie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this for page one.

[Terri · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is for young teens, but I really enjoyed it.

[JL Salty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good pace, fun twists, sweet romance and sister-friendship; a girl finding a dream.