The Road from Nowhere
Scholastic Press
January 6, 2026
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audio book narrated by
Jonathan Myles
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What’s this book about?
Only three kids live in the tiny, remote high Colorado desert silver mining camp of Gatchett’s Gluch, population 45.
Brothers Ollie and Gus, thirteen and eleven, and Alys, the only girl in town, are the only kids. Bored and restless, they want to find silver on their own and liberate themselves from isolation.
When they stumble upon a cave that contains traces of silver, the boys (along with Alys) are determined to set up their own mine. But Elijah Gatchett, the man who owns and runs the town, won’t allow other prospecting in his area and has harsh ways to enforce it.
Moreover, this is 1893, a time of economic crisis, with the price of silver going steadily down. Meanwhile, the boys’ mother has found a man she wants to marry, a visiting geologist. At the heart of this story is the beating heart of Ollie and Gus’s ever competitive relationship — often at odds but mutually dependent. How the kids navigate all this — with a surprising ending — is an old-west adventure that has not been told.
Awards and Recognition
Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
Reviews
For brothers Ollie and Gus, “nowhere” is Gatchett’s Gulch, a remote, distressed mining camp in 1893 Colorado. Ollie, 13, believes their only hope is prospecting his own silver mine and striking it rich: he’d be able to move Gus, 11, and his mother to a better life. Ollie isn’t deterred even though he’s a kid who can’t read or write, and mine owner Elijah Gatchett illegally controls all prospecting in the area. Ollie’s fortunes shift when Bertram Blake, a geologist and teacher at the State School of Mines, arrives at the camp. Blake, a wealth of information for Ollie—and readers—explains how to “read” the rocks as well as the government’s involvement in silver mining and agrees to help the boy stake a claim. The novel’s leisurely pace peaks at Ollie’s bold attempt to hire miners away from Gatchett and start his own mine, quickly thwarted by Gatchett’s armed thugs. A hopeful future is in store for the family. Perhaps it’s not what readers might envision, but they’ll understand what Ollie means: “there was more than one way to get rich.” Ollie’s first-person narrative vividly recreates a world far from modern-day comforts, sure to captivate fans of historical fiction. Back matter includes an author’s note on resources and an intriguing Q&A about his writing process. Ollie and Gus are cued white. VERDICT: Avi is a master of historical fiction, addressing universal issues that transcend his novel’s setting and timeline. A first purchase. (Marybeth Kozikowski, School Library Journal, starred review)
This rousing historical novel highlights the Silver Crash of 1893, a consequential moment in American history whose economic implications dramatically impact the protagonists’ dreams of cultivating a better future for themselves. Thirteen-year-old Ollie Cleary lives with his mother and 11-year-old brother Gus in Gatchett’s Gulch, Colo., a silver mining settlement where the family ekes out a living doing laundry for the prospectors. Ollie dreams of finding silver and becoming rich, but the camp’s founder, Elijah Gatchett, forbids unauthorized mining. When Ollie and Gus stumble across an unoccupied cave containing a silver lode, they hatch a plan to register a claim and start their own rival mining operation. Enlisting their 11-year-old English-born friend Alys Thomas and adult newcomer Bertram Blake, a traveling teacher and geologist, the boys dive into their scheme, which they must complete before Gatchett finds out and shuts them down. Meanwhile, rumors of rapidly decreasing silver prices threaten the town’s economy. Avi (Lost in the Empire City) organically captures the atmosphere of the era and setting via Ollie’s animated narration, which maintains a sense of optimism and hope throughout his slice-of-life coming-of-age experiences and classic kid adventures. The memorably rendered characters cue as white. (Publishers Weekly)
Two young brothers vie to strike it rich in the 1893 Colorado silver mining camp of Gatchett’s Gulch.
Thirteen-year-old Ollie Cleary, younger brother Gus, and their friend Alys Thomas are the only children in their isolated mining settlement, “population forty or so.” Ollie dreams of striking it rich by finding silver and moving far away. The boys’ mother supports them by doing the miners’ laundry and mending; after their father’s death in a mine accident, she’s adamant that her sons not take up mining. One day while the boys and Alys are out exploring, the Clearys’ dog, Poco, disappears into a cave that turns out to be rich in veins of silver. But their hopes are quickly dashed by Mr. Gatchett, the menacing mine owner, who insists he owns all the land and its silver. He threatens to run out of town anyone who dares to mine for silver on their own. The author expertly weaves in historical details, creating a strong sense of time and place. The story explores the complexities of land claims and the significance of a possible repeal of the Sherman Act, which guaranteed that the U.S. government would purchase large quantities of silver. Threats, like an encounter with a rattlesnake and the presence of the controlling, sinister Mr. Gatchett, help sustain the tension. Chapter cliffhangers propel the narrative, leading to a satisfying and unanticipated ending. Characters present white.
A page-turner with a well-realized setting. (Kirkus Reviews)
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