The Ride by Nancy Cathers Demme is a coming of age novel about a young man fleeing from a dark past. After setting the barn alight with his abusive stepfather inside, Diego runs away from home, hitching rides across Texas in the early 1950s as he searches for his real father. Along the way, he meets a flurry of colorful characters, each offering him their own form of advice and guidance as Diego attempts to find absolution in himself for what he perceives to be his many sins, including a hint of pyromania. With each odd job, ranging from farmhand to bar singer, Diego hopes he comes one step closer to finding the man who disappeared one night from his life.

Diego’s journey throughout The Ride by Nancy Cathers Demme is almost heart-wrenching as he escapes from beatings and sexual abuse at the hands of his stepfather. I enjoyed reading about the different people Diego encounters and wondered if he would eventually come across someone who would take advantage of a lone boy hitch-hiking through Texas. His emotions about each new situation were palatable and realistic. There are glimpses of his past life. You could tell he was just on the cusp of adulthood, still grappling with the punches life had thrown at him. I would have liked a bit more substance to the events, especially surrounding the ending, as it feels like it finishes too abruptly. Saying that, this novel has a great deal of potential, and I would definitely read something by this author again.

In Nancy Cathers Demme’s moving novel, The Ride, fifteen-year-old Diego Ramirez flees home. Hoping to put as much distance between him and his home in El Paso, Texas, Diego plans to walk till daybreak then hitchhike from there. Diego’s recollection of all the abuse he has suffered at the hands of his step-father remains sharp in his mind. Now, Diego is on the run having set the barn in which his step-father was in on fire. With only a burlap bag that carries his mother’s life savings and a few of his prized possessions, Diego climbs into a truck which is his first ride. From El Paso to Odessa, Midland, Sweetwater, among other towns, Diego travels, hoping to find redemption from his past and his obsession with fire.

Told through the eyes of the main character, The Ride captures the pain and confusion plaguing Diego. The novel reveals the heart-breaking experiences of victims of physical and sexual abuse and how the painful experiences influence the victim’s perspective and decisions. Feeling trapped with no one to turn to, Diego tries to put an end to the suffering he has continuously endured. The work is made captivating by its eccentric set of supporting characters incorporated into the work through the rides that Diego is offered. The drivers have different personalities and views. Their opinions are contrasted to Diego’s unspoken opinions. The Ride by Nancy Cathers Demme is a poignant novel that follows the main character’s journey through pain, disappointment, fear, and freedom.