The Barefoot Bandit

April 2, 2012
Veteran travel writer Friel's story of Colton Harris-Moore, aka the Barefoot Bandit, reads like something out of the Wild West, complete with an old-fashioned nom de guerre, cross-country chases, and a harrowing shootout in the middle of the night. But the fruits of Harris-Moore's efforts mark his story as that of a distinctly modern outlaw. A neglected, precocious teen growing up in the Pacific Northwest, Harris-Moore looted houses for cash, computers, and junk food, sometimes doing his laundry in victims' homes. However, when a Cessna goes missing, authorities realize their local bandit has greater aspirations, and they have a much bigger problem on their hands. Friel's geographical proximity to the epicenter of Harris-Moore's crimes makes him a well-suited narrator for this compelling procedural. Interviews with locals, as well as Harris-Moore's mother and childhood friends, paint a picture of a shy outsider who spent much of his life fending for himself. Friel traces his criminal evolution with a journalistic eye for detail, covering every crime Harris-Moore committed during his lengthy spree. He would go on to cause thousands of dollars in damage before finally being apprehended on a boat in the Bahamas. Friel is a gifted writer, and though the narrative occasionally gets repetitive, patient readers will relish this cinematic tale of an inspired teenaged fugitive. Others might prefer to wait for the movie adaptationâthe rights have been purchased. Photos.

January 15, 2012
Highly detailed account of a teenaged criminal who eluded law enforcement for two years. Travel journalist Friel became fascinated with Colton Harris-Moore when he and his wife relocated to the seemingly peaceful residential island of Orcas in the waters off Washington State. Harris-Moore, born in 1991, grew up on Orcas and knew its terrain intimately. By age 10 he was stealing from local businesses and homes. Caught occasionally, he served time in juvenile detention before starting a new crime spree focused on stealing and flying private airplanes, even though he had never completed pilot training. When Harris-Moore could not successfully steal an airplane, he stole pleasure boats and automobiles. As his brazen thefts spread to other islands and then to the mainland, law-enforcement agencies felt certain they could capture Harris-Moore. They were wrong. He often escaped on foot, outrunning police despite his insistence on going through life without wearing shoes (hence his moniker "the barefoot bandit"). Those bare feet and his height caused Harris-Moore to stand out, but he seemingly did not worry about disguising himself. The bulk of the narrative provides sometimes-overwhelming amounts of information about Harris-Moore's crimes and his escapes. Friel also examines his subject's haphazard home life, his loving but often inept mother, his unpopularity in school and his apparent desire to go through his young life as a loner. The author eventually became involved in the search to locate Harris-Moore, adding a mostly effective first-person element to the saga. A remarkable crime saga that could have been 100 pages shorter.

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February 1, 2012

Colton Harris-Moore's short but impressive crime spree--it ended before he turned 18--is truly the stuff of legend. A bright boy growing up in a dirt-poor home, he focused on his three great loves: airplanes, wilderness survival, and the adrenaline rush of crime. His first crimes were low-key--breaking into homes and stealing food, taking cars for joy-rides, etc.--but his offenses became more serious, expanding to include identity, boat, and airplane theft. His crime spree was a source of embarrassment to local authorities and of sneaking admiration from area antiauthoritarian sympathizers. Eventually caught in the Bahamas, where he had crashed a stolen airplane, Harris-Moore was sentenced to over seven years in prison and awaits sentencing on further charges. Freelance writer and photographer Friel lives on Orcas Island (a part of the San Juan Islands, located in the northwestern corner of Washington State), near the Barefoot Bandit's home territory, and his account of the teenage terror of the coast is compelling. VERDICT This highly entertaining story of a modern-day Huck Finn will be enjoyed by lovers of adventure stories as well as true crime.--Deirdre Bray Root, Middletown P.L., OH

Copyright 2012 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2012
Failed by his alcoholic mother and the child-welfare system, a teenage Colton Harris-Moore taught himself to survive in the wilds of the Pacific Northwest. He also taught himself to fly airplanes and sailboats that he stole and used to escape when his career as a burglar, searching for food, tools, and computer equipment, brought him to the attention of the juvenile authorities and police. On the run for two years after escaping from juvenile prison, he led police, Homeland Security, and the FBI on a chase through isolated islands and wooded areas of Washington State and Canada before striking out cross-country and ending up in the Bahamas. Friel, a travel writer and blogger living on one of the islands targeted by Harris-Moore, chronicles his exploits and the cult fanship that developed as teens followed their idol online and his publicity-hungry mother taunted the would-be captors. Against a backdrop of the wilderness populated by survivalists, Friel offers a thrilling portrait of a bright and neglected teen trying to outrun authorities and his own troubled past.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)