"I am not always such a dreamy girl, listening to the sea calling me. My father calls me Three-sided Sophie: one side is dreamy and romantic; one is logical and down-to-earth; and the third side is hardheaded and impulsive."

Thirteen-year-old Sophie, skipping between "dreamland or earthland or muleland," hears the sea calling her. Much to the concern of her adopted parents, she decides to join her uncles and male cousins on a sailing voyage from Connecticut across the Atlantic to England (and her grandfather Bompie) on a 45-foot sailboat. Not only does she want to make the trip, she feels she has to.

This perilous cross-Atlantic journey will make young readers feel the wind in their hair and the salt spray on their face. Newbery Medal winner Sharon Creech (Walk Two Moons) describes the sailing experience with astonishing precision--from the smell of the sea to the intricate workings of The Wanderer itself.

Along the way, Sophie proves her bravery and competence to the rather grumpy all-male crew; intrigues and captivates her cousin Cody with her beautiful, odd stories of Bompie that always somehow end in underwater disaster and apple pie; and spills her heart into a daily journal. Readers get another angle on her, too, as Cody keeps a log that alternates with hers. He grows to know, and like, and wonder about, his new cousin Sophie along with the reader, and as her mysterious past reveals itself bit by bit, we are all right there on the edge of our seats, ready for the boom to crash over to the other side.

Sophie's adventures take her not only straight into perilous waves higher than buildings, but deep into her hidden past. This profound, suspenseful novel will pull you into its swift current and barely let you surface for breath. (Ages 9 to 13) --Karin Snelson

From Publishers Weekly
In a starred review of this Newbery Honor book, PW wrote, "Like Walk Two Moons, this intimate novel poetically connects journey with self-discovery. Creech once again captures the ebb and flow of a vulnerable teen's emotional life, in this enticing blend of adventure and reflection." Ages 8-12. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Grade 5-9-Thirteen-year-old Sophie, her two cousins, and her three uncles sail across the Atlantic Ocean to England in a 45-foot sailboat, fulfilling the men's lifelong dream. The trip is also a perfect opportunity to visit the ailing patriarch of the family, Bompie, who recently left the U.S. and returned to his birthplace. Sophie conveys her fascination with the sea in journal entries and retells many of Bompie's stories. Cousin Cody, also 13, keeps his own journal and it is through his entries that readers learn that Sophie's view of things is not always reliable and that she does not always tell the truth. Sophie is actually adopted and has never met Bompie. What happened to her birth parents? Why does she pretend her adopted family is her only family? And why does she pretend to know a man she has never met? These questions will keep readers motivated to discover the answers to the girl's secrets. During the journey, the shipmates endure a dangerous storm that reveals truths about each of them and allows Sophie to face the truth. The first-person immediacy and episodic nature of the narratives allow for piecemeal but intimate revelation of character. The story is exciting, funny, and brimming with life. For each crew member, there is a conscious journey to Bompie across the sea, and an unconscious one of self-discovery. This is a beautifully written and imaginatively constructed novel that speaks to the power of survival and the delicacy of grief.Katie O'Dell, Multnomah County Library, Portland, OR Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Parents' Choice®
Thirteen-year-old Sophie, who is passionate about sailing, talks her way onto her uncle's sailboat as he, his two brothers, and a couple of nephews prepare to sail across the Atlantic to visit Grandfather in England. Though she is brave and resourceful, Sophie is haunted by fears. The frequently frightening trip gradually reveals these fears as true.

A prize-winning author takes us on a new voyage. A 2000 Parents' Choice® Gold Award.

Reviewed by Kemie Nix, Parents' Choice® 2000

From AudioFile
Sophie is eager to set sail on THE WANDERER--the only girl in a crew of six. She and her uncles and cousins, Brian and Cody, are heading for England to visit her grandfather. The listener quickly realizes that there are hidden issues in this family, which are slowly disclosed in alternating logs of the trip kept by Sophie and Cody. Dana Lubotsky and John Beach are just right as Sophie and Cody, making the audio edition easier to follow than the print edition. Their voices are young, fresh, and believable, perfectly capturing two 13-year-olds attempting to find clear sailing in a tempest-tossed adult world. S.G. © AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

From Booklist
Thirteen-year-old Sophie begs her way aboard a sailboat trip from Connecticut to England, accompanied by her adoptive mother's three brothers and two nephews. Along the way, the close relatives endure close quarters, destructive storms, and the fear that they will not make it to shore. Meanwhile, they come to know each other better and respect each other more. Written with grace, subtlety, and wit, the story unfolds as a series of journal entries by Sophie and her cousin Cody. The apparent openness of Sophie's writing, and the fact that the first four chapters offer her point of view alone, leads readers into an acceptance of her narrative truth. In a shift more poignant than ironic, the reader discovers another layer of reality when Cody reflects on aspects of Sophie's life that the uncles won't discuss (the circumstances surrounding her parents' death) and that she doesn't record in her journal (the fact that she was an orphan, adopted into the family only three years before). Little by little, Sophie begins to remember and acknowledge the parts of her past too painful to deal with before. Presented directly, the weight and force of such revelations might have swamped the novel, but here, handled obliquely, they simply lift and carry the whole story further along. David Diaz contributes a series of small ink drawings as handsome chapter headings that add pleasure to this memorable voyage of discovery. Carolyn Phelan

From Kirkus Reviews
Creech (Bloomability, 1998, etc) again crafts a profound tale of simultaneous inner and outer journeys, sending a child across the Atlantic in a small boat both to visit an ailing grandfather she claims to know well but has never seen, and to recover a past she has hidden away from herself. Thanks to a combination of stubbornness and demonstrable expertise, 13-year-old Sophie wangles a berth aboard Wanderer, a 45-foot craft that three uncles and two cousins intend to sail to England to see beloved old ``Bompie.'' Telling the tale in alternating journal entries from Sophie and deceptively carefree cousin Cody, Creech takes her often contentious crew past dolphins and deadly weather, exciting discoveries and hard tests of courage. Meanwhile she is concocting an enticing mystery from contradictions in the twin narratives: Why is Sophie ignoring the fact that she's adopted? Why does she feel such a mix of love and terror for deep water? What happened to her parents? How has she come to be so familiar with Bompie's stories, even though she's never met him? Deftly assembling her puzzle piece by piece, Creech paces the revelations to match the voyages' sometimes triumphant, sometimes harrowing events, bringing both ``wanderers'' at last to safe harbor. It's a multilayered tale, combining bracing, open-air adventure with personal growth, in its protagonist and in much of the strong supporting cast as well. (Fiction. 11-13) -- Copyright ©2000, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

School Library Journal (starred review)
“A beautifully written and imaginatively constructed novel that speaks to the power of survival and the delicacy of grief.”

Publisher's Weekly, starred review
"Like Creech's Walk Two Moons and Chasing Redbird, this intimate novel poetically connects journey with self–discovery.

The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred review)
“Sophie is a quietly luminous heroine, and readers will rejoice in her voyage.”

The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred review)
"Sophie is a quietly luminous heroine, and readers will rejoice in her voyage."

Book Description
"The sea, the sea, the sea. It rolled and rolled and called to me. Come in, it said, come in."

Thirteen-year-old Sophie hears the sea calling, promising adventure and a chance for discovery as she sets sail for England with her three uncles and two cousins. Sophie's cousin Cody isn't sure he has the strength to prove himself to the crew and to his father. Through Sophie's and Cody's travel logs, we hear stories of the past and the daily challenges of surviving at sea as The Wanderer sails toward its destination -- and its passengers search for their places in the world.

Card catalog description
Thirteen-year-old Sophie and her cousin Cody record their transatlantic crossing aboard the Wanderer, a forty-five foot sailboat, which, along with uncles and another cousin, is en route to visit their grandfather in England.

FROM OUR EDITORS

With Walk Two Moons, Newbery Award-winning author Sharon Creech captured the hearts and imaginations of readers everywhere. Now, she takes us on a memorable new journey, with The Wanderer. In this moving and adventure-filled novel, 13-year-old Sophie is the only girl amongst the six-person crew of The Wanderer, sailing across the Atlantic. She's eager to face the challenges of the sea, though her cousin, Cody, doesn't seem to be serious about anything. Through Sophie's and Cody's engaging travel logs, the perilous journey of these six wanderers unfolds. But for Sophie, the true journey is into her past -- as she unlocks the pain she has been hiding from herself, and discovers what it means to belong to a family.

ANNOTATION

Thirteen-year-old Sophie and her cousin Cody record their transatlantic crossing aboard the Wanderer, a forty-five foot sailboat, which, along with uncles and another cousin, is en route to visit their grandfather in England.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Thirteen-year-old Sophie is the only girl amongst the surly crew of The Wanderer, made up of her three uncles and two cousins. As they sail across the Atlantic toward England, the land of her grandfather, the sea calls to Sophie. But the personal journey she takes brings her deep into a forgotten past. Sophie's struggle to reclaim who she is inspires those around her, as the crew discovers the joys and trials of belonging to a family. Newbery Award winner Sharon Creech tells the adventure-filled story of a courageous girl's journey across the ocean and into the memories of her past.

FROM THE CRITICS

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

Sophie is a quietly luminous heroine, and readers will rejoice in her voyage.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

Creech again crafts a profound tale of simultaneous inner and outer journeys.... [The Wanderer] is a multilayered tale, combining bracing, open-air adventure with personal growth, in its protagonist and in much of the strong supporting cast as well.

Publishers Weekly

In a starred review of this Newbery Honor book, PW wrote, "Like Walk Two Moons, this intimate novel poetically connects journey with self-discovery. Creech once again captures the ebb and flow of a vulnerable teen's emotional life, in this enticing blend of adventure and reflection." Ages 8-12. (Apr.) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Like Creech's Walk Two Moons and Chasing Redbird, this intimate novel poetically connects journey with self-discovery. When 13-year-old Sophie learns that her three uncles and two male cousins plan to sail across the Atlantic to visit the uncles' father, Bompie, in England, she begs to go along. Despite her mother's protests and the men's misgivings, Sophie joins the "motley" crew of the 45-foot The Wanderer and soon proves herself a worthy sailor. The novel unfolds through travel logs, predominantly penned by Sophie (with intermittent musings from her clownish cousin, Cody) that trace each leg of the eventful voyage; each opens with a handsome woodblock-like print by Diaz (Smoky Night). The teens' insightful observations reveal the frailties of both the boat and its six passengers, whose fears and regrets anchor them down. Sophie, who was adopted just three years ago, proves the most complicated and mysterious of all the characters; her ambivalent feelings about the sea ("The sea, the sea, the sea. It rolled and rolled and called to me... but some said I was too young and the sea was a dangerous temptress...") correlate to a repressed memory of a tragic accident. Stories Sophie tells about Bompie, as well as clever throwaway bits (such as the brothers' given names: Ulysses, Jonah and Moses), temper the novel's more serious undercurrents. Creech once again captures the ebb and flow of a vulnerable teen's emotional life, in this enticing blend of adventure and reflection. Ages 8-12. (Mar.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|

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