In the Saddle with Uncle Bill [Paperback]

Will James (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

While visiting their Uncle Bill on his ranch, two city kids learn the ways of the western range.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Mountain Press Publishing Company (January 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0878424288
• ISBN-13: 978-0878424283
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #316,670 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars Don't strain yourself looking for a plot, April 7, 2004

By 

Purity (Midwest) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In the Saddle with Uncle Bill (Paperback)

For the second summer in a row, siblings Scootie and Kip Powers are back on the Five Barb Ranch and ready to ride. Just one day after their arrival, they hit out for wild horse country with their cowboy chaperone "Uncle" Bill. But when Bill takes off after a herd led by three renegade horses, Scootie and Kip are left in his dust and with no idea how to return to the ranch.

This second installment in the "Uncle Bill" trilogy reads more like a short story than it does a novel. The children's solitary adventures on the range, including losing their horses and trapping the elusive renegade horses, are bland to the say the least. The story could easily have been wrapped up some fifty pages sooner; as it is, several pointless chapters are tacked on after the story has obviously already reached its conclusion.

James's folksy, conversational style is the only thing that makes this tale bearable. His characters are lifeless and two-dimensional, and as for plot - well, be forewarned and don't strain yourself looking for it.