“Some days it isn’t even a good idea to get out of bed,” muttered Aunt Ruthie as she stepped out of the mercantile. Just then, a bullet hits her in the heart and kills her, leaving 11-year-old Sallie and 15-year-old Maude orphans once again. Soon thereafter, the sisters are headed west, about to live the adventures Sallie had read about in her dime novels. They are involved in a bank robbery, struck by a headless rattlesnake, attacked by a mountain lion and forced to be on the run when wanted posters featuring “Mad Maude” begin appearing in the newspapers. What a pleasure to read something just for the sheer fun of the storytelling. Sallie’s fresh and feisty voice, girls dressed as boys, an outlaw with a heart of gold, adventure and humor add up to great family entertainment. (Fiction. 9+)
