Prairie Dog Cowboy

Awhile ago I took part of a book blog tour and hosted my publisher, V. Gilbert Zabel and her historical novel for young teens called Prairie Dog Cowboy. We had a great response to the tour, even though I hadn't had a chance to read the book at that time. Click here to see my previous post about the book. I finally got to read it yesterday and I have to tell you, I absolutely loved it. I was immediately drawn to the main character, Buddy and I enjoyed watching him go from a five-year-old boy to a young man. It broke my heart how mean spirited Buddy's mom was to him and I was blown away by the love and affection he was given by his neighbors. Even though the book is written for young, reluctant readers, I enjoyed it very much.

Jordan M. Vinyard did the illustrations and they add so much to the story. Back when I was younger and reading middle grade novels, illustrations were a really big part of books. They don't do that as much now. Jordan's pictures bring the story to life. Right now I'm reading Trumpet of the Swan to my boys as part of our schooling. They love the story, but love it even more when there's a little picture to go with it. I can't wait to read Prairie Dog Cowboy to the boys next. I know they're going to love it. Anyway, I just wanted to mention the book again now that I've actually read it. If you have a young teen, or a reluctant reader, or even smaller kids you'd like to read the story to, this is a great book for them. You can order the book through Amazon or directly from 4RV Publishing. I'm really hoping Vivian is working on a sequel because the story left me wanting more, which is what a good book should do. I didn't want to put it down. Great job, Vivian!

On another note -- I hope everyone is enjoying the spring weather. I hear so many people saying it's finally nice where they live. It's another story where I am, as we're in the middle of a pretty big snowstorm. In fact, there's very little visibility right now and all I see is white. I'm looking at my little squirrel friend outside, who's sitting in a mound of snow on top of one of our birdfeeders. She's dug out a little place so she can eat. I think we're supposed to get snow for the next few days. I'm not complaining -- I love it.