by Carl Deuker
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Product Description
When a new job falls his way, Chance jumps at the opportunity, becoming a runner who picks up strange packages on a daily route and delivers them to a shady man at the marina. Chase knows how much he will earn—what he doesn't know is how much he will pay.
Suspenseful, fast-paced, and timely, this novel avoids easy answers as it examines issues of terrorism and patriotism, fear and courage, and lives of privilege and poverty.
This brand new paperback edition includes a Q and A with author Carl Deuker.
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Average Customer Review:
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
 Runner, 2007-12-28
"When kids hear I live on a boat, they picture a floating mansion outlined with Christmas lights like the one in the old movie Sleepless in Seattle. They think I sit on the deck under an umbrella while waves gently lap up against the sides, foghorns sound in the distance, exotic seabirds fly overhead." Chance Taylor a senior in high-school wishes this was true but his boat the Tiny Dancer is an old, weather-beaten, thirty-foot sailboat. Chances father an alcoholic Gulf War veteran just lost his job which was the last steady job Chance can remember him having.
Chances escape from this is running. Then one day after he was done running a man offered him 200 dollars week to pick up packages by the beach on his running route. In the beginning chance suspects whatever he is picking up is illegal but continues to do it because he needs the money. As Chances friend Melissa and his dad get involved the danger of the situation become more apparent. In the captivating climax Chances father rises above his own problems to save his son. Deuker gives hints of what are in the packages without really telling you and the suspenseful action that he writes will keep you engaged in the story.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
 GREAT!, 2007-12-04
The book Runner by Carl Deuker, is about a boy named Chance who lives with his father in Seattle on his sailboat called The Tiny Dancer. Chance's mother left him when he was little and he hasn't seen her since. Now he is living with his father who can't seem to find a job. Chance and his father are short on money and are always late paying the bills. He tries to help his father by washing pots at Ray's Restaurant but it doesn't pay a lot. One day after going for a run, Chance was walking back to his boat when a fat man who worked in the marina office stopped him and offered him a job. "`You know something? I like your spirit. I really do,' said the fat man. `But I don't have time to play games. So listen and listen carefully. You're in trouble, and I can get you out of that trouble. I'm offering you a job, kid. Very good pay; very short hours. When somebody offers you easy money, you should at least hear him out.'" Chance knows that this man is up to no good, but he needs the money to pay the bills.
I thought Runner was an excellent book and I had trouble putting it down. This book is very original and exciting trying to learn what the fat man was doing and why he wanted Chance's help. It was interesting reading about Chance's adventure and hearing all of the problems he was going through with money and school, and finding out what he was doing for the fat man. I highly recommend it to anybody. It is definitely one of my favorite books I have ever read.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
Taking the "Reluctance" Out of Readers, 2007-07-01
Carl Deuker's RUNNER should attract both teachers of reluctant readers and young readers who feel that reading is not for them. The beginning is interesting enough with its high school bullying episodes and questions of rich (as embodied by romantic interest Melissa Watts) vs. poor kids (our protagonist Chance Taylor, who lives on a small sailboat on a marina's dock), but the book really takes off when recreational runner Chance gets an offer he wants to but cannot refuse -- running mysterious packages in exchange for cash like he and his alcoholic ne'er-do-well father have never seen.
Here the high-octane plot takes off, running away with a reader who can't help but hold on to find out what's happening. Are the packages drugs? Explosives? Money? And who are the mysterious people leaving them behind in the cracks of a retaining wall near a beach on Puget Sound? Chance really doesn't want to know, but soon events take a dangerous turn, and if he cannot work up the guts to seek out the truth, it turns out the truth might be ready to seek him out -- with dire results.
Known for his sports books, Deuker here shows a skill for pacing and plot in a thriller that will keep readers guessing until the spectacular finish. Although it touches on themes of patriotism and social class, RUNNER shouldn't be read for any deep characterization or rich description; realize instead that it is a book meant to entertain with a fast-moving story that should win over even the most reluctant of readers. Teachers should keep it on hand for students who will only try a fast-read, and young readers looking for a quick and engaging plot should "play Chance" by running some packages that may or may not make them an accomplice to a crime.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
Strong to the end!!- Passion Writer 123, 2006-11-26
Chance is teenager living an unusually hard life. His father is an alcoholic who can neither pay the morgage nor face the truth of their tough situation. When Chance is offered a well-paying job, he must either forget the immorality of it or forget the job. The longer he stays in the buisness, despite his slight ignorance, the deeper he gets. When a suicide or possible murder occurs, Chance must be exteremly cautious to let no one get involved, expecially not someone he cares about. But of course he meets a girl- how ironic!!!
Great work of literature. I recomend this novel to all ya/teen readers.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
runner book review, 2006-09-18
Chance is the main character in the book called Runner. This book was written by Carl Deuker. Chance and his dad live on a boat in a marina. His dad is having problems paying moorage fees and other expenses. Chance has to help him out. Chance's dad is an alcoholic and a bum spending the rest of his spare change on beer. The father would rather sit out on his tiny boat drinking than helping his son. Chance is having many problems in his life when his mom leaves them to go on and do something more with her life.
Everyone on the pier knows that Chance's dad just got fired from his job. A stranger who nobody has seen before works in the marina office and asks Chance if he needs money to help his dad out. Chance doesn't think twice about this decision. All he has to do is jog a mile to a point, look for a package, then jog back with the package. If there is a package at the point, Chance returns it to the office marina guy. Every week Chance receives $200 dollars for running his normal jog route and returning packages that are there at the point. Chance is desperate for money to keep his boat and his spot on the pier. This job appears easy to Chance. He doesn't think about the contents of the packages and the possible consequences.
In this heart-pounding thriller, Carl Deuker combines global concerns and the threat of terrorism with the everyday worries of a teen who only wants to keep his life together until graduation. Supported by a smart, politically aware girl in his history class, Chance learns there's a lot more to patriotism than just waving a flag, and a lot more to courage than just following rules he knows may be wrong. This timely, complex story will make you think twice about the choices you make and what it means to be brave.
I personally liked this book a lot. It has several good parts in this story and some bad parts too. In life you want to make good choices and not bad ones. The moral of the story is to always think before you act.
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