Bart skips outta Fort Collins on an eastbound freight train and ends up in rural, rustbelt, Stentorville, Pennsylvania—a whacky place complete with forgetful old lady—Dotty, black-booted, ragtag bullies stomping around town, one weird, red-headed, whiz kid—Ollie, and a hard-to-read young lady—Abby with a gigantic fireman dad. Set in a previous era, readers will find eerie parallels to events happening today. Poignant while delving into difficult subjects of White Nationalism and Alzheimer's; Middle Grades to High School and adults who may need to understand societal influences on their children; Reading and literacy teachers: Theme, Point of View, Characters, Cause and Effect, History compare & contrast; Relatable, authentic, multicultural teen characters. Parallel stories which merge into one edgy climax. A worthy introduction for teens to a discussion of White Nationalism as part of the current national scene. Highly recommended.
