Twelve year old Alvin loves learning everything he can about Arctic explorer Matthew Henson. When his teacher assigns a project for Black History Month, Alvin chooses to report on his hero.
Living with his mother and grandmother, Alvin looks up to Uncle Pete who teaches him to ride a bike and promises to take him on a bike trip in the summer. Alvin's mother worries about him constantly. She won't let him buy a mountain bike with his savings because it would be too dangerous to ride in the city. She treats him like a baby who needs to be watched and is too overprotective. He finally decides he's had enough and makes plans to go north and follow in the footsteps of his hero to find out as much as he can for his report. He uses his savings and makes the trek north on the train. What he finds is that no amount of planning would make this an easy trip. In the face of many obstacles, he matures and realizes what he left behind. At the same time, he learns some life lessons in trust, patience and appreciation of family. I liked this story, but found it hard to believe a twelve year old could successfully make this journey on his own. Middle school boys 10-13 will like this story for its adventure and the determination of Alvin.

Personal Response:

I thought that this story started out really well. However, I felt like it kind of slowed down in the middle of the book, and then seemed to drag on. I was really disappointed by the ending of this book as well. The resolution of the story was what kept me going with it, and then it just ended without answering any of the questions I wanted to hear the answers to! Some of the events of this story are very far-fetched. I didn't feel like it modeled healthy ways of dealing with family problems. I also think that Native Americans were not portrayed in the most politically correct way. Sometimes their language was made out to be quite primitive.

School/Library Uses:

I definitely have my reservations about this book. I don't think it would be high on my list to purchase for my library. However, it is a bit of a fascinating story for kids who like adventure stories. I think this would be a good book to reccommend to boys who are reluctant readers in a school or public library setting (and if you could foster some discussions with this book, that would be ideal). ( )

great book for people who like a suspensful book with alot of action and thrills ( )

North is the story of Alvin, a boy with dreams of being an explorer. He pictures himself going to Africa, Asia, the Amazon... Unfortunately, his mother is so overprotective that she won't even let him buy a bicycle with his own money. When Mamma finds out that a drug dealer approached Alvin on his way home from school, she insists on having an elderly neighbor walk him to school every morning. For Alvin, it's the last straw. He's been studying the polar explorer Matthew Henson in school and he decides to follow the footsteps of his hero. He'll travel to the North Pole and see with his own eyes what Henson described as "fierce beauty". So he sets off. He's got a backpack full of clothes, a sleeping bag, and $439.00. First stop, New York City. From there all he's got to do is keep traveling north, right?

What I really liked about North is that I found it remarkably believable. Alvin's journey isn't easy and he makes plenty of mistakes. Certainly he makes friends and gets lots of help along the way, but never to a ridiculous point. This was a fast-paced adventure story that I couldn't put down. (And don't take my word for it... check out another review at a wrung sponge.)

My one complaint is, of course, the lack of an author's note... I would have loved to see what inspired Napoli to write this book, where she turned for research, and if she traveled to the Arctic... but then, I am a big author's note geek. We know this. ( )

Tired of his mother's overprotectiveness and intrigued by the life of African American explorer Matthew Henson, twelve-year-old Alvin travels north and spends a season with a trapper near the Arctic Circle. After facing trials that challenge his courage and thinking ability, he heads home with a new sense of freedom and confidence.