“So begins a tale of one summer, two friends, 46 mountains, and 5 million years.” This succinct explanation of “Forty-Something: An Adirondack Tale” by Michael Keeler, stated on the book’s back cover, is the essence of the tale but there is so much more to discover in this coming-of-age story of a young teenager and a young college drop-out.

The two main characters are Bran, a kid from New York City whose single mother sends him to work at an expensive High Peaks camp for one summer and Mr. Kutschner (a.k.a. Kootch) who takes care of all the maintenance jobs at the camp. The camp director has hired Bran to do some jobs around the camp to pay for his tuition, and he invites Bran to join in activities with the other campers. As one might expect that arrangement doesn’t last. One also might expect the plot to center around the typical problems young teens have fitting in with kids of a higher social standing. Surprisingly, the story instead centers around Bran’s developing friendship with Kootch, whom Bran ends up living with after a dust-up with two campers on his first day there. Kootch, who has lost his college hockey scholarship due to a dust-up of his own, has already climbed most of the High Peaks from several different access points. He is the one who literally starts Bran on a mission to climb all 46 Adirondack High Peaks and join the 46er club.

Both young men have emotional baggage that impedes the development of their friendship, but both are hard workers who quickly become committed in the 46-peak challenge. Along the way, Kootch teaches Bran about the far-reaching history of the Adirondacks. Bran learns that the Algonquins were called “Bark-Eaters” by the Haudenosaunee as an insult to their perceived poor hunting skills. In return, the Algonquins insulted the Haudenosaunee by calling them “Rattlesnakes.” Other stories teach about the important historical roles played by Hiawatha, Christopher Columbus, and Samuel de Champlain. My two favorite stories involve Melvil Dewey and Franklin D. Roosevelt. Melvil Dewey, of the Dewey Decibel system, had a huge impact on the Adirondacks. After Dewey moved out of Albany to the foot of Whiteface, due to allergies, he built the Placid Club in 1895. The social and recreation club became world renowned and eventually influenced the town to change its name to Lake Placid. The brilliant, intolerant, misogynistic Dewey was also instrumental in turning Lake Placid into a sports mecca and Lake Placid ended up hosting the 1932 Olympics. In 1929, as governor of New York, Franklin Delano Roosevelt approved the construction of the 5-mile-long Whiteface Veterans Memorial Highway which climbed 2300 feet up the side of Whiteface Mountain. The plan included the castle with a restaurant and a gift shop inside it, a quarter mile walkway, and an elevator that ascended 27 stories.

Throughout his summer of climbing high peaks with Kootch, Bran matures, and his confidence grows. Kootch, thanks to his association with Bran, grows up a bit too and makes some important decisions about the next phase of his life. Though the friends may never see each other again, there is a distinct feeling that they will never forget that one life-changing summer and their quest to conquer 46 Adirondack High Peaks.

“Forty-Something: An Adirondack Tale” by Michael Keeler is available on Amazon. The language is perfect for middle-school or early high school ages and for anyone who aspires to join the 46er club.

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Editor’s note: This book review, part of the weekly “Read in the Blue Line” column, was inadvertently not published in its usual spot in Wednesday’s paper.