Description

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Two brothers leave home looking for their father, and find themselves hitching a ride with a violent killer – here is a road trip from hell.

Jonah and his younger brother, Simon, are on their own. They set out to find what's left of their family, carrying between them ten dollars, a backpack full of dirty clothes, a notebook, and a stack of letters from their brother, who is serving a tour in Vietnam. And soon into their journey, they have a ride. With a man and a beautiful girl who may be in love with Jonah. Or Simon. Or both of them.

The man is crazy. The girl is desperate. This violent ride is only just beginning. And it will leave the brothers taking cover from hard truths about loyalty, love, and survival that crash into their lives.

One more thing: The brothers have a gun. They're going to need it.

About the Author

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Andrew Smith is the author of Ghost Medicine and The Marbury Lens, both of which were named American Library Association Best Books for Young Adults. He is also the author of In the Path of Falling Objects. Smith started writing for newspapers and radio. He then traveled around the world and from job to job, working in metal mills, as a longshoreman, in bars and liquor stores, in security and as a musician. Now, in addition to writing, he teaches high school advanced placement classes and coaches rugby. He lives in Southern California with his family, in a rural location in the mountains.

Praise For…

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“Falling Objects is a mystical, lyrical, sometimes violent, and ultimately hopeful story of what it means to be a brother. …For teens looking for something to sink their teeth into, Smith offers a challenging read. Powerful imagery and symbolism are threaded throughout the narrative along with Bible references, a map that Jonah is drawing, a meteorite that Simon takes along as a talisman, and references to gravity and its relentless pull. The intensity will suit serious readers who don't mind a little blood and gore.” —School Library Journal

“...16-year-old Jonah and his brother, Simon, two years younger, embark on a brutal but mesmerizing road trip that steers an unswerving course toward tragedy. …[O]lder teens will be riveted.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Smith's Vietnam-era road trip tells the tense, violent and cathartic story of teenage brothers Jonah and Simon, 16 and 14, on the run after their mother abandons them in their New Mexico home.” —Publishers Weekly

“A relentless, bleak thriller that nails the claustrophobic sense of being totally out of control, and moving fast.” —Booklist

“The setting is vivid, the plot (including a thrilling showdown) is suspenseful, and the characters are complex and intriguing, particularly in their interactions with one another. It's a wilderness survival adventure wherein the characters have to survive each other as much as the harsh, unforgiving landscape.” —Horn Book