Last week, I read a book by Max Elliot Anderson titled Barney and the Runaway . I was interested in this book because of recent discussions I've had with friends about what their sons are reading and about finding books for them to read that they are interested in. Rather than focusing on that discussion (which I'll save for another post) in this review, I'm simply going to review this particular book. Max Elliot Anderson was a struggling and reluctant reader when he was growing up. His work experience is in the fields of motion pictures, videos, and commercials. He has written several books and Barney and the Runaway is his most recent. Here's a trailer for the book: Storyline: The story is about a boy, Mike, who runs away because he doesn't like the rules in the house. He and his dog, Barney (who I pictured to be much smaller in the book than is shown in the trailer), get trapped on a railroad car traveling southeast. When ...