Gideon's River spans the gulf between what is and what ought to be. Like "what is" novels such as Dickens' Oliver Twist, which depicts the awful situation of orphans in Victorian London, this story shows a child in jeopardy. Like "what ought to be" stories such as Harry Potter, in which an intelligent and courageous boy overcomes a terrible foster home and many other dangers, Gideon's River shows a spirited boy who insists on taking action and finding answers. Gideon's River is, first, a good story that moves at a moderate to fast pace through the adventures of a twelve-year-old boy and his best friend, Cody. Unfolding against the backdrop of the town of Little Bridge and the sometimes flooded Susquehanna River, Gideon's River is also the story of the grownups who love Gideon and want to help him grow up with the confidence that is the birthright of every child. This novel will appeal to all who have witnessed the age old twin dramas "the bully and the wimp," to all who have wondered, as Gideon's mother Rosalie does, how to help an unhappy child--and what to do about meanness in the world. Complementing the story are several minor plot threads, including a minister who prefers putting on plays to doing any pastoral counseling, an Earth Day project creating a path by the river, and a teen mother Rosalie sees on her home visiting rounds as a county worker. Gideon's effort to contact his biological father cause him to stumble during a rainy night upon a little known steep and curvy road through the Catskill mountains, a road without guardrails. Gideon's River has action and heart and, in the end, a way out and up, offering both hope and method to those who care for our children.