Neglected by his parents, fourteen-year-old Terry Anders is used to taking care of things on his own. He even manages to assemble a car kit by himself. When the car is finished, Terry sets off from Cleveland to Portland in search of an uncle he barely remembers. Along the way, he is joined by a wise Vietnam vet who turns his journey into an adventure in learning. Each book includes a reader's guide.
A teenager left on his own travels west in a kit car he built himself, and along the way picks up two Vietnam veterans, who take him on an eye-opening journey.
GARY PAULSEN has written nearly two hundred books for young people, including the Newbery Honor Books Hatchet, Dogsong, and The Winter Room. He divides his time between a home in New Mexico and a boat on the Pacific Ocean.
Anonymous
Posted February 3, 2011
The car
the car is realistic fiction.the theam is a car named the cat.the background is in United States.terry's parents left him at age 13. He build a car and drives off.Meets some buddy and goes on an adventure.
the first time i read this book i just could not stop reading the farther i got the better the book got.i love it when terry started putting the car in place to go.i haft to agree this book is great.!!!
omar559
Posted May 3, 2010
Summary
"The Car" is about adventures and discovering new things. Its about a boy name Terry Anders. He is 14 years old. His parent would always fight and one day both of them left. Terry was left alone and he started assembling a kit car and started planning his trip to an uncle he barely remembers that lives in Oregon. On his journey to Oregon terry meets two war veterans Waylon and Wayne. I like the book because it was about a teenage boy that learned to live on his own. I think this book is more like for teens. Yes, I did agree with the main idea because even though his parents left him alone he took on the world by himself. I liked that he built the car by himself and got to drive it across America. Yes, he did because a actually finished reading it. I don't think there needs to be any changes.
"The Car" is a book about discovery. It is about adventure and meeting new people. The story is about a boy named Terry Anders. His parents always fight and eventually leave. While alone he puts together a kit car and plans a road trip to Oregon. Along the way, he meets war veterans Waylon and Wayne, and together they discover America. This book is different from many of Paulsen's other works, because many of his stories, such as "Hatchet" and "Woodsong" are about adventures in the wilderness. However, most of this book takes place on highways. Although a good book, this book isn't as good as many of Paulsen's others. Truthfully, I was expecting a little more from Paulsen. In closing, although not a "must-read", this book will help end a person's boredom and pass time.
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Posted November 24, 2008
I Also Recommend:
I chose this book because I read one of the authers books called Hatchet and I liked it. I decided to read it for my first nine weeks book. I liked the book because it was about a teenager like me. This teenager builds a car and goes for a ride meeting some strange people on the way but these strange people are kind of cool. I recommened this book to teenagers that like adventurous books.
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Posted September 17, 2008
The car is about a 14 year old kid named teddy who was raised by parents who always fight. one day after a big fight his parents take off forever and can't take it anymore, so he decides to build a car. This starts the story and sends terry into a new life where he actually starts learning about the world. the book kept me hooked and the writting of it was very deatailed. what i didn't like was the ending beacuse it makes it seem as another book is coming out but their isn't another coming out. overall i think this book is a great book and perfer anyone old or young to read this book.
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Posted January 11, 2008
The book The Car by Gary Paulsen is a fun an exciting book to read. The Car is about a boy named Terry whose parents both decided to leave on the same day and just leave him at home all alone. My favorite part is when he first starts to drive the car he built. He is going to Oregon to live with his uncle. And on the way he picks up a hitchhiker named Waylon and later in the story, they pickup Waylon¿s buddy (he doesn¿t really have a name.) If you like kit cars a cross country adventures you will love this book I think this book is good for a lot of people even old people.
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Posted October 19, 2007
it was a great book for teenagers this is the only book ive ever enjoyed reading
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Posted April 27, 2007
Terry is left alone by both of his parents. He is left to fend for himself. All he can do is build a car kit that his father left behind. After Terry finishes the car, Terry heads west. Terry finds a man and the two of them head west. Waylon takes him to Wayne. Wayne owns a Harley that he names Baby. The three off them go head west each day brings a new adventure and a new twist to the trip west. At the end of the book it was very confusing who was who because both names were really similar to each other. I also didn¿t like how the book ended. If you like adventure and surprises you will like this book. The Car is mainly for boys because there are very few girls in the story. I rated the book a three because the book is confusing and hard to understand.
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Posted March 20, 2007
Terry is a year old boy and has built a car. His parents left him, and now to pass the time he is building car. His parent was always fighting. Sometimes one would be gone for days a time. Then one day they called one at a time not knowing that the other one had also left. Terry also has a job mowing lawns at a local housing complex, and has saved up almost 1,300$. The day when he got Cat (an old kit car) running he took it on his first drive and that is also his first time he had ever driven. He had decided to drive out to his uncles out in Washington. On his way he meets people and they help him. I thought this book was a really good one. I would recommend this book to anyone that likes cars or has had a hard life.
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Posted March 1, 2007
This book is about a 14-year old boy named Terry who is left by his parents. Taking days and nights he builds a kit car that he names The Cat. So he starts out with twenty-four hundred dollars that he has and he decides to meet his uncle who lives in Portland, Oreagon. He starts to drive out west to meet his uncle even though he wasn't old enoungh to drive. He thinks that he can basically drive across the whole country without getting caught. Along the way he meets a person named Waylon who just randommly comes to ride off with Terry. Terry is a little scared at first but eventually they become two good friends. Then Waylon takes Terry to person named Wayne who has a roaring Harley Davidson. There Terry figures out that both Wayne and Waylon had been in the Vietnam War. Wayne and Waylon ask a bunch of stuff about America's past, and Terry barely knows any. So Wayne and Waylon decide to take Terry to a person named Samuel which who knows how old he is. So there Terry starts to figure out that he doesn't know a lot and starts to get the flow of asking questions and wanting to learn more. Then Wayne and Waylon teach Terry this thing called Trucking where someone choses want he wants to see and that's where the go. So while Terry is doing this Trucking, he learns a lot about the past like the Civil War, The Indians, and how things were back then. This causes to keep asking question and without knowning it he learned so much. Waylon is so good at poker so they go to small place that has Poker and can't be too big becuase Terry is only 14 yrs. There Waylon wins $2400 and gives Wayne and Terry $6000 dollars. Wayne took it with no problem, but Terry was shocked that Waylon was just offering $6000 for free. That is when Wayne tells Terry 'It's only money. A way to store energy.' That is when Terry realize what wayne had said was true. After they go to a place where they learned a lot about the Indians. At the restaurant they are some drunk cowboys and they insult Wayne and Waylon. So Wayne hits them hard. So for revenge they chase Wayne and Waylon and then Wayne and Waylon find a good place to fight and tell Terry to leave. He hesitates but finally leaves becuase there were cops coming. Finally he makes a plan to wait until the cops go and pick up Wayne and Waylon. This is how the book ends. This would be a really good book for people who like history and cars. This is a really uniqe book that isn't how most books aren't. This describes the past really well and gives a good picture of the past. This is a book that is recommended for everyone.
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Posted November 20, 2006
amazing book. i couldnt stop reading it. my favorite book written by gary paulson. just amazing
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Posted March 1, 2006
Very well written book. Kept me intresed all the time. Tells you that not all things have to be learned in the classroom or have it taught to you by an older person. overall very excting and I could not put it down.
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Posted March 10, 2005
The Car is a very good book. It's about a kid named Terry Anders abandoned by his parents. He has no choice but to go on and begins by assembling pieces of a kit car from his father's garage. When he finishes the car, known as the Cat, Terry sets out from Cleveland to Portland to search for an uncle he hardly knows. Along the way Terry picks up a wandering Vietnam veteran who guides him on a journey of discovery and survival.
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Posted February 26, 2005
Gary Paulsen is the best author ever!!! I recomend any of the books he writes!!!
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Posted February 24, 2005
This is a great book about a 14 year-old trying to find his uncle after his parents break up and accidentally leave him. Gary Paulsen is a great author!!
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Posted May 16, 2003
Fourteen-year old Terry Ander's parents left him after a fight. Eveary day eating peanutbutter-jelly sandwiches while working on the car. The car his dad left. He haeds west when he picks up a vietnam veteran.he guides him to his long lost Uncle in Oregon.
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Posted April 2, 2003
this book was really good - the title is the car, but this book is about so much more than just a car. it teachesyou that in order to learn you dont need to go to school - experience can teach you everthing.
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Posted November 25, 2002
This is the best book that i have ever read, i belive the only reason why i like this book so well is becouse i love working on any thing just as long as it has a motor. i wish i could have a kit car to build just for the fun of it on my own time.
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Posted October 8, 2002
This book was great....I was so surprised that when I read this book, I almost felt like I was there and having the time of my life
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Posted December 8, 2002
I hate to read and I can never sit and read, but when I read the first two pages I just couldnt stop. I recommend this book to ay teenager...Its Great
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Overview
Neglected by his parents, fourteen-year-old Terry Anders is used to taking care of things on his own. He even manages to assemble a car kit by himself. When the car is finished, Terry sets off from Cleveland to Portland in search of an uncle he barely remembers. Along the way, he is joined by a wise Vietnam vet who turns his journey into an adventure in learning. Each book includes a reader's guide.
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