Set during the 19^th C. canal days, when Maggie's father loses next year's salary and two of their best mules in a bet with Long-Fingered John, the family is left desperate for money. They have only a few days to get the heavy cargo in their mule-drawn barge to Buffalo in order to make a much-needed bonus. But when Papa and Uncle Hen are arrested on an alleged assault charge, 12-year-old Maggie, her younger brother, and their pregnant mother must fight all manner of adversity to save their boat, their mules, and their life savings. In Desperate Journey, history and thrilling adventure are woven together into a moving story about courage, endurance and the powerful bonds of family.

In this historical novel, Jim Murphy introduces a compelling new character while exploring with grit and color 19^th C. life on the canal. Riveting detail, an afterward, and a teacher’s guide will also help readers understand this brief time in which canals blossomed and helped speed people and goods to new destinations across America.

Booklist: "Murphy moves to historical fiction in this gripping novel…. The characters aren’t romanticized: Maggie is nervous and snappy and often feels jealous and angry at home. But the real attraction for readers is the journey itself, filled with details of daily labor on the barge and a sense of community – a "neighborhood" as tightly knit and protective as any on land."

School Library Journal: "A must-have for New York state libraries, this will also be welcome wherever historical fiction is popular."

The Buffalo News: "{Murphy} vividly describes the rough-and-tumble brawling life of the canal. The writing is so vivid, you can smell the cabbage stew cooking in the cramped cabin and feel the mud on the towpath slogging underfoot. He beautifully blends this vivid picture of canal life with an affecting coming-of-age story about 12-year-old Maggie, whose loyalty to family conflicts with her dreams of escape to a better life. His fine book should find its way into every Western New York classroom."

Kirkus: "The Erie Canal was "one of the greatest engineering feats in the history of the world," a highway for settlers heading west and a route from the Great Lakes across New York state to Albany and on to New York City. For 12-year-old Maggie Haggerty, it's a route to a new life, preparing her for a future in the wide world. When her father is arrested for an alleged assault, Maggie takes responsibility for getting a shipment to Buffalo and proves herself to her family. In the process, she finds that the life she wanted to run away from is really the life for her. …This is a well-written story about a little-known part of American history."

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