Author: Wolf, Allan
Title: Zane's Trace
Publisher: Candlewick Press Date: 2007 ISBN: 9780763628581
Price: $16.99 #of pgs: 177 Call number: FIC WOL
Annotation: Zane's Trace is the story Zane Guesswind, a young man whose teenage
years are made all the more difficult by the fact that his family is troubled by mental
illness, substance abuse and suicide. To make matters worse, Zane has epilepsy, is an
outsider in school and has to live with his aging and crotchety grandfather who treats
Zane, at best, with contempt. As a way of working through his pain and expressing how
he feels, Zane writes and draws obsessively with permanent markers all over his bedroom
walls until one day his frantic scribblings seem to start coming true. First, the bully at
school, who won't give Zane a break, suddenly moves away the day after Zane wishes,
(in writing on his wall), that he'd just disappear. The story quickly changes gears,
however, when, believing he has similarly caused the death of his grandfather, Zane
steals his father's car, (a 1969 Plymouth Barracuda), and begins a 300+ mile trek to
Zanesville, Ohio. There, Zane plans to shoot himself at his mother's graveside, using the
heirloom pistol that she used to kill herself when Zane was only a child. Along the way,
he picks up a mysterious hitchhiker, Libba, and meets motley, and even ghostly, cast of
characters, each of whom helps Zane come to terms with which he is and the hand that
life has dealt him.
Strength: Written almost entirely in free verse, this novel is fast paced, funny and
poignant. It handles serious subject matter with intelligence and honesty without
becoming maudlin. The characters are realistic, easy to relate to and readers instantly care
what happens to them.
Weakness: Limited profanity and serious subject matter. However, all topics are handled
tastefully.