Book Review of Finding Sagrado by Roger Carrier

Finding Sagrado is a coming of age story, but unlike any other you’ve read.  The author, Roger Carrier, does a great job with this book and uses a theme I haven’t seen in another story.  This alone should be an incentive to pick this book up and read it.

The characters are believable in this well-written story about a teenage boy who goes on the hunt for a town he reads about in a novel in English class.  His father died in Vietnam and now his mother is seeing another man and wants to marry him.  This gives Shane even more of an incentive to search for his town where he thinks life is perfect.

He plans his strategy over the next few weeks, thinking of brilliant ways to throw his family off the track when they discover he’s run away from home.  This planning entails a roundabout way to reach Sagrado, which he thinks is somewhere in New Mexico.

When the big day finally arrives, Shane takes some money his father hid in the basement and starts his journey.  However, he finds traveling the way he’s planned causes him some pitfalls and run-ins with some dangerous elements.  Besides these setbacks he didn’t plan for, he meets some colorful people in his search.  These kind strangers are happy to help him, showing that all people aren’t bad characters.

Once he arrives in what he believes to be Sagrado from his favorite novel, Shane attempts to make it so through the other people he meets there, sometimes stretching the truth just a little.  We see this whole story unfold through Shane’s eyes, bringing back issues all teenagers face growing up.  The reader can empathize with Shane’s trials as he tries to become an adult and find his place in society.  While chasing his dream, Shane remains aware of how his actions may affect the family and friends he left behind.

Roger Carrier brings the New Mexico desert to life with his colorful description of the landscape and the characters and situations that help to shape Shane’s life.  Sometimes you can help the people you meet as much as they can help you.

This enjoyable book will linger with you long after you’ve closed the cover.  Highly recommended.  I'm giving this book five stars.  It's well written, edited, and has a unique theme and great characters.