Stay Alive: The Journal of Douglas Allen Deeds, The Donner Party Expedition, 1846
Rodman Philbrick
📚 Genre
Children's Historical Fiction - Survival Stories
🏢 Publisher
Scholastic Inc.
📅 Publication Year
2014
🔢 ISBN
978-0545620659
About This Book
A fictionalized journal of a young boy named Douglas Allen Deeds traveling with the ill-fated Donner Party in 1846, detailing the harrowing struggles of survival, starvation, and winter weather in the Sierra Nevada mountains. The cover features a stark, snowy mountainous landscape with a young boy in winter gear prominently in the foreground, surrounded by other travelers and oxen in the snow.
Book Details
Language
English
Pages
176
Edition
Paperback
Series
I Survived / Historical Diaries series (Companion book or standalone historical fiction entry)
Target Audience
Middle Grade (Ages 8-12)
Collector Information
Condition
Good. There is a prominent vertical creasing/folding line running along the left side of the front cover near the spine, moderate edge wear, and some glare and light surface scratching on the glossy cover laminate.
Estimated Value
$3-$8
Rarity
Common. Widely printed and distributed through Scholastic book fairs and retail bookstores, making copies readily available in the secondary market.
Historical Significance
Introduces young readers to one of the most tragic and well-known events in American westward expansion, the Donner Party tragedy, promoting interest in American history and survival narratives.
Collector Notes
As a mass-market scholastic paperback, this copy holds primarily reading value rather than high monetary collectible value. To preserve it, store away from direct sunlight to prevent cover fading, and keep in a temperature-controlled environment to avoid page yellowing.
Similar Books
I Survived the Donner Party, 1846 by Lauren Tarshis, The Boys' War by Jim Murphy, Valley of Bones by Michael Northrop, Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
Notable Features
Scholastic paperback edition with a red Scholastic logo on the bottom front cover; structured as a historical diary format with map and historical note appendices typically included inside.