Chasing Windmills
by Catherine Ryan Hyde
by Catherine Ryan Hyde
CHASING WINDMILLS by Catherine Ryan Hyde
Category: Contemporary
Age Recommendation: Grades 9+
Release Date: 3/4/08
Publisher: Flying Dolphin Press
Reviewed by: Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky"
Rating: 5 Stars
Seventeen-year-old Sebastian sneaks out at night. His domineering father home-schools him, makes decisions for him, and
keeps an eye on him every minute of every day. Sebastian knows that only the nights are his after his father takes his
sleeping pill.
Maria is a young mother of two, living with an abusive boyfriend. She is riding the subway because she is too afraid to
admit to Carl that she has lost her job. She knows it can't go on forever, but once she meets Sebastian it becomes
impossible to imagine life without him.
They met late one night on the subway. They exchanged glances and shy smiles, and finally they began to talk.
Once Sebastian begins to see the real world, he begins to question how his father has raised him. His only friend, an old
woman living in a neighboring apartment, gives him the love his father never shows. With her encouragement, he makes a
plan to escape from his father and take Maria with him. He contacts the maternal grandmother he barely remembers and
learns his father has not just sheltered him, but also lied to him. His mother didn't die. She is alive and well in the Mojave
Desert where he is welcome anytime.
Author Catherine Ryan Hyde tells the story of Sebastian and Maria in alternating chapters. The fear and pain of their
loveless lives screams from the pages. I found myself feeling the absence of one when the chapter I was reading focused on
the other. Even though CHASING WINDMILLS somewhat parallels several famous love stories of the past, it has its own
unique voice and interpretation. It will most certainly touch your heart.
Category: Contemporary
Age Recommendation: Grades 9+
Release Date: 3/4/08
Publisher: Flying Dolphin Press
Reviewed by: Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky"
Rating: 5 Stars
Seventeen-year-old Sebastian sneaks out at night. His domineering father home-schools him, makes decisions for him, and
keeps an eye on him every minute of every day. Sebastian knows that only the nights are his after his father takes his
sleeping pill.
Maria is a young mother of two, living with an abusive boyfriend. She is riding the subway because she is too afraid to
admit to Carl that she has lost her job. She knows it can't go on forever, but once she meets Sebastian it becomes
impossible to imagine life without him.
They met late one night on the subway. They exchanged glances and shy smiles, and finally they began to talk.
Once Sebastian begins to see the real world, he begins to question how his father has raised him. His only friend, an old
woman living in a neighboring apartment, gives him the love his father never shows. With her encouragement, he makes a
plan to escape from his father and take Maria with him. He contacts the maternal grandmother he barely remembers and
learns his father has not just sheltered him, but also lied to him. His mother didn't die. She is alive and well in the Mojave
Desert where he is welcome anytime.
Author Catherine Ryan Hyde tells the story of Sebastian and Maria in alternating chapters. The fear and pain of their
loveless lives screams from the pages. I found myself feeling the absence of one when the chapter I was reading focused on
the other. Even though CHASING WINDMILLS somewhat parallels several famous love stories of the past, it has its own
unique voice and interpretation. It will most certainly touch your heart.
