Yonder by Ali Standish

Yonder is a thoughtful and moving historical novel about the nature of heroism.

Yonder by Ali Standish. Harper, 2022, 348 pages.

Reading Level: Middle Grades, ages 10-12

Recommended for: ages 12-15

A Hero’s Tale

Danny Timmons recognized a hero when he saw one. Heroism looked like plunging into a river at flood tide to save two small children, in full view of adults who lacked the courage to do the same thing. That’s what young Jack Bailey did during the flood of 1940, and the town of Foggy Gap will not forget it. But here’s the thing about heroes: “We want them to be brave, but we don’t want to know what that bravery has cost them.” Or, perhaps, where it came from.

Jack was barely known to Danny before that incident, but he becomes like a big brother later, when he turns up with broken bones and bruises and the Timmons take him into their home for a while.

Jack has a story nobody wants to hear, though everyone knows about his abusive father. There are other goings-on in town that few wanted to acknowledge, like the malevolent influence of Mr. Pitman and why the town’s one black family has to move away. With war breaking out in Europe and men enlisting for service (Danny’s father included), Foggy Gap needs heroes. Jack seems to fit that description, but he has a backstory he can’t tell and a future he can’t share. His refuge is an imaginary place called Yonder—or it is altogether imaginary?

A Human Tale

It sounds grim, but the story is told not only beautifully but humanely, with even unsympathetic characters receiving their due. Danny is beginning to learn the troubling dimensions of the world (and human sin) while Jack is seeking a place in it. “What if there were wars—some small, others vast—happening around us all along, and we had been missing our chance to fight?” Both will discover redeeming qualities, especially Danny, through the goodness and stability of his family. Jack’s future is less assured, but if there’s a Yonder for him, he’s hopeful of finding it. Though both boys attend church, along with almost everyone else in town, God is not an abiding presence. But grace abides.

Overall Rating: 4.5

• Worldview/moral value: 4
• Artistic/literary value: 5

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Also at Redeemed Reader:

• Reviews: The Unsung Hero of Birdsong, USA and The War and Millie McGonigle feature a similar theme of grappling with tough issues against the background of World War II.
• Review: Village of Scoundrels is a fictionalized account of a small town in France that acquitted itself well during the German occupation.

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