Hard to Have Heroes

Gr 9 Up—Fourteen-year-old Noah Odell and his widowed mother move from rainy Oregon to join Uncle Bud on a ranch in New Mexico. They find themselves in the middle of nowhere, living in a rundown ranch house with black widow spiders in the outhouse. The climate is hot and dry, the land supporting only rattlesnakes, buzzards, and scrawny cattle. Noah soon finds adventure with a mule named Brimstone and new friends as they explore the desolate area, meeting a cast of extraordinary characters. This cowboy tale set in the 1950s includes folklore, lost gold, and villains determined to confiscate Uncle Bud's ranch to expand a top-secret rocket-testing facility. Although this adventure of a modern-day cowboy is written for adults, the author's writing style, wit, and humor will appeal to teens.—Denise Moore, O'Gorman Junior High School, Sioux Falls, SD