How to Stay Invisible by Maggie Rudd

How to Stay Invisible   by Maggie Rudd  230 Pages

Twelve-year-old Raymond Hurley has never had a place to call home. His freewheeling parents move their family from town to town, and they're living in a trailer in a brand-new state when one day they just up and abandon him. All alone with nothing but a duffel bag full of clothes and Rosie, his reliable pup, Raymond is forced to live in the woods behind his middle school. With a fishing pole in hand and a survival guide checked out from the library, Raymond scrapes by and doesn't tell anyone his secret. This isn't the first time he's had only himself to rely on. However, when winter days get colder and finding food becomes nearly impossible, Raymond makes new friends, including a curious coyote, in unexpected places. Soon he learns that his fate will depend on not just his wilderness skills, but also on the people and animals he chooses to trust. In her heartfelt debut novel, Maggie C. Rudd takes readers on a journey of survival that speaks to friendship, adventure, and the everyday wonders of nature. In middle school, blending in is easy, but sometimes the braver thing is being seen.

I read this because it is a Mark Twain nominee.  It was very sad but a reality for some children.  I am not sure children will understand the depth of the tragedy, and would think it is an adventure story.  I did not like the ending.  They introduced all of these different characters and then he didn't even get to go live with any of them...sorry spoiler!  It was a good book, but I definitely would want a different ending!

You Ought to Do a Story About Me: Addiction, an Unlikely Friendship, and the Endless Quest for Redemption by Ted Jackson

 336 pages / 10 hrs, 15 mins

"In 1990, while covering a story about homelessness for the New Orleans Times-Picayune, Ted Jackson encountered a half-naked drug addict sleeping under a bridge. After snapping a photo, Jackson woke the man. Pointing to the daily newspaper by his feet, the homeless stranger looked the photojournalist in the eye and said, “You ought to do a story about me.” When Ted asked why, he was stunned by the answer. “Because, I’ve played in three Super Bowls.”

"That chance meeting was the start of Ted’s thirty-year relationship with Jackie Wallace, a former NFL star who rose to the pinnacle of fame and fortune, only to crash and lose it all. Getting to know Jackie, Ted learned the details of his life, and how he spiraled into the “vortex of darkness” that left him addicted and living on the streets of New Orleans. 

"Ted chronicles Jackie's life from his teenage years in New Orleans through college and the NFL to the end of his pro career and the untimely death of his mother—devastating events that led him into addiction and homelessness. Throughout, Ted pays tribute to the enduring friendship he shares with this man he has come to help and also look at as an inspiration. But Ted is not naïve; he speaks frankly about the risk that such a relationship poses: Can a man like Jackie recover, or is he destined to roam the streets until his end? 

"Tragic and triumphant, inspiring and infuriating, You Ought to Do a Story About Me offers a rare glimpse into the precarious world of homelessness and the lingering impact of systemic racism and poverty on the lives of NOLA’s citizens. Lyrical and evocative, Ted's account is pure, singular, and ambitious—a timeless tale about loss, redemption, and hope in their multifarious forms."  --from the publisher

This is a thought-provoking and heart-rending story. It includes some unique insights that (I think) would make it interesting and worthwhile for most readers. I cannot recommend the audiobook read by Christopher Grove--check out a print copy instead. I give it four out of five stars.