Blue Springs — Peter Rennebohm

It was supposed to be a special weekend. A time for eleven-year-old Charlie Nash to spend quality time with his father and much loved dog, Taffy. The hunting weekend falls apart immediately as his drunken father runs another car off the road, has a dangerous confrontation with other hunters, and is arrested on the way home. The weekend is a disaster, a nightmare. It's enough to dishearten any child and forces Charlie to consider running away from all the chaos. Set in 1955 Minnesota, Charlie's journey with Taffy takes the reader on a roller-coaster ride of action, mystery, and adventure as the boy is pursued by not one, but two separate, but equally focused killers intent on ending his life. Each of two evil men pursuing him have differing motives: Virgil Pisant has old scores to settle with Charlie's father and plans to kidnap the boy in retribution. A hired killer named LaBette is sent to find the boy for a valuable collection of pennies Charlie has in his possession and will stop at nothing to find Charlie and his treasure. Charlie and Quill, a man he meets in his travels, become fast friends, helping each other to learn the virtues of honesty and forgiveness―all the while Quill must protect the boy from the unforeseen dangers that surround him. Blue Springs is an entertaining and exhilarating mystery, with captivating, charming characters. The intimate moments shared by Charlie and Quill are absorbing, honest, and, in the end, the old man's compassionate character illuminates the dark world to which Charlie has been subjected. Their friendship grows and expands, enduring a heart-rending test of sacrifice and danger.