Holly doesn't want to be used and abused in foster homes anymore. She makes a plan and then makes a break for it. It isn't as easy as it looks, but it's better than being a twelve year old orphan at the mercy of people who don't really care about her.
As the days crawl by, Holly digs through the garbage for food, sleeps on the cold ground, and steals what she needs to survive. Her goals are to stay alive and make it to the ocean. She imagines herself as a Sea Gypsy and longs to watch dolphins play.
Getting to the ocean requires transportation. Braving possible death, Holly jumps a train to make part of her journey. She also becomes a stowaway in the luggage compartment of a bus. Eventually, she arrives on the West Coast and finally to the ocean. Survival continues to be a challenge and takes Holly to lengths she never thought possible.
Readers learn about Holly's ordeal through the runaway's personal journal. Holly first begins logging her thoughts and addressing them to the teacher who gave her the journal. Through entries and poems, Holly uses writing to express her fears, her successes, and her failures until she finally finds a security she didn't think she'd ever have again.
Author Wendelin Van Draanen is also known for THE RUNNING DREAM, FLIPPED, and SWEAR TO HOWDY among others. Published in 2006, RUNAWAY still rings true today.
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