Joe Willie Wolfchild's life was shattered just three seconds away from becoming rodeo’s World Champion. He had drawn the meanest bull on the circuit, and the bull won. With his left shoulder completely obliterated and right leg pulverized, Joe Willie has gone home a man of broken dreams.

Aiden Hartley was a troubled biracial teen sentenced to two years in juvenile detention. In danger of becoming an embittered criminal, a detective sees hidden potential and reaches out in an unexpected way. Grudgingly agreeing to the cop’s offer, Aiden is thrown into a world he hardly understands after two years in prison.

Claire Hartley was heartbroken when her son was sent away. Convinced that she should have done better for him, she set out to make a new, safer life. After Aiden’s release, Claire meets him on the Wolfchild ranch for three life-changing weeks.

The Wolfchild family embraces Claire and Aiden as two of their own. It doesn’t take them long to see a great deal of similarity between Joe Willie and Aiden, though the two young men don’t see it. Especially unique is the Wolfchilds’ blending of cowboy and Native American ways, which will have profound meaning for Aiden.

Wagamese delivers a beautifully written tale about family, grief, anger, and hope. Blending gorgeous setting descriptions with gritty dialogue and action, he introduces readers to a little-understood way of life; one that is often romanticized beyond belief. Wagamese honors the cowboy way with heartfelt prose that will grab readers from the beginning.

Some readers may be annoyed with the numerous references to smoking or to un-PC terms, but these things are as true to the culture as seeing wide vistas from horseback. Life in cattle and prairie lands is vastly different from the frenzied pace of the urban experience.

While some aspects of the story are predictable— Joe Willie and Aiden’s developing partnership being the foremost—this journey is very much worth the ride.

Reviewed by Christina Wantz Fixemer
8/30/2006

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