The Trouble with Heroes - Hardcover

by Kate Messner (Author)

An instant New York Times bestseller!

A USA Today bestseller!

Read with Jenna Jr. Summer Reading List Pick!

"Genuinely moving." --The New York Times Book Review

"Explores the healing power of hiking." --NPR's All Things Considered

Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year School Library Journal Best Book of the Year Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year: Middle Grade The Week Jr. Best Book of the Year Chicago Public Library Best Book of the Year An NCTE Charlotte Huck Award Honor Book The Week Jr.'s Book Club Pick

Bestselling and award-winning author Kate Messner takes readers on a heart-filling journey as a boy finds his path to healing.

One summer.
46 mountain peaks.
A second chance to make things right.

Finn Connelly is nothing like his dad, a star athlete and firefighter hero who always ran toward danger until he died two years ago. Finn is about to fail seventh grade and has never made headlines . . . until now.

Caught on camera vandalizing a cemetery, he's in big trouble for knocking down some dead old lady's headstone. Turns out that grave belongs to a legendary local mountain climber, and her daughter makes Finn an unusual offer: she'll drop all the charges if he agrees to climb all forty-six Adirondack High Peaks in a single summer. And there's just one more thing--he has to bring along the dead woman's dog.

In a wild three months of misadventures, mountain mud, and unexpected mentors, Finn begins to find his way on the trails. At the top of each peak, he can see for miles and slowly begins to understand more about himself and his dad. But the mountains don't care about any of that, and as the clock ticks down to September, they have more surprises in store. Finn's final summit challenge may be more than even a hero can face.

Author Biography

New York Times bestselling author Kate Messner is passionately curious and has written over seventy books for kids who wonder, too. Her titles include award-winning picture books like Over and Under the Snow, The Next Scientist, and The Scariest Kitten in the World as well as novels for older readers like Breakout and The Trouble with Heroes. Kate also writes the popular the History Smashers graphic nonfiction series and leads the multi-author team behind The Kids in Mrs. Z's Class chapter books. She splits her time between Lake Champlain and South Florida and is a proud Adirondack 46er.

www.katemessner.com
@KateMessner