The Re-Read: The Boxcar Children

Thinking back on that, before re-reading the book, I realized with dawning horror that, of course, he was hungry, he was homeless! How callous I’d been, being annoyed by a little boy’s hunger.

But again, no—past the first book, they’re not homeless anymore—Benny just has a big appetite. And in the first book, hot older brother Henry (what—he’s hot, right?) always manages to provide them with some milk and bread and whatever else hobo kids eat.

It’s true, the Boxcar Children are essentially child hobos. Think about that for a minute.  That should be a totally depressing book, right? And yet, sunny as could be. And believe me, I was looking for a dark backdrop, hints of their true predicament—ones that kids might not pick up on, but surely an adult would. But, nothing.

In fact, everyone they meet (save one cranky baker) adores them upon first sight and helps them. Even the wretched grandfather they’re on the run from turns out to be not only super nice, but also super rich, and invites them to live in his mansion, hooray!

And this is how generations of kids came to say “Mommy, mommy, I want to go live in the woods!” It’s basically our generation’s Walden.

The more I thought about The Boxcar Children, the more I wondered what the real story was. What would really happen to kids living alone in the woods? It would be way darker, more real hunger, real issues.  As the laws of this decade decree, a gritty reboot must be due.

Gritty Boxcar Children? Sign me up!

Emily Murdoch’s If You Find Me is not an intentional remake of The Boxcar Children, but it does answer my question—what would really happen to siblings left alone in the woods?

Well, for one thing there’s a lot more in the way of drug dealers, pedophiles, and true fear. If You Find Me follows the story of 15-year-old Carey, whose drug addicted mother ran away with her when she was young and parked her in a busted camper, deep in the woods. Years later, still in the woods, Carey is left in charge of raising her nearly mute six-year-old sister Jenessa, while their mother shows up intermittently with canned goods for them. 

When the story begins, their mother hasn’t been back in months and the girls are near starving. We see a story of true survival on bare means in the woods—beyond what Henry, Jessie, Violet and Benny could even fathom, much less handle.

After 10 years—her sister’s full lifetime and most of hers—salvation comes in the form of her father and the social worker who finally find them, deep within a national park.  Carey is terrified of her father, who her mother alleged had beat them—the reason they ran away and hid in the woods in the first place. But much like the Boxcar Children’s cruel grandpa, the truth is not what it seems.

As the girls adjust to life in the outside world, and their new upper middle class life, there’s both physical and psychological trauma to overcome. Not to mention public school, a bratty step-sister, and the bright lights of the suburban mall. You know, all the things that would really happen when a couple of kids left to fend for themselves in the woods re-enter society.

The story is in turn beautiful, shocking, and heart wrenching. Living in the woods no longer seems like such a fun idea, after reading this.

If you want to know what would really happen, read If You Find Me. If you prefer to live in a child-like fantasy of berry picking and boxcars, stick with The Boxcar Children. There’s room for both in my library.

Featured Photo: Cover of Meet the Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner