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Be Not Far From Me by Mindy McGinnis
Katherine Tegen Books / HarperCollins
Publication Date: March 3, 2020
ISBN: 978-0062561626
After finding her boyfriend cheating on her during a party in the woods, Ashley takes off in anger and ends up lost, with a serious injury to her foot, and with only her wits and some survival skills to help her make it out alive.
Creepy woods with dangerous animals? Check.
Kick-butt heroine who tells it like it is? Check.
Chopped off body parts? Check.
This book makes the perfect enticing read for a reluctant reader with a dramatic party in the woods hook within the first few pages and then an all out insane fight for survival the rest of this short, fast-paced story. With just the right amount of realistic gore, this one can also find an audience that needs non-stop action to keep them reading. Ashley is a character that readers will root for as she finds new ingenious ways to make it through until the bitter end.
Hand this one to readers who have not read a book they enjoyed since reading Hatchet by Gary Paulson. Afterwards, fans of this book will also enjoy I Am Still Alive by Kate Alice Marshall and The Distance Between Lost and Found by Kathryn Holmes.
–Molly Dettmann
