Ambush at Mustang Canyon

The final part of Kearby's western trilogy, /Ambush at Mustang Canyon/ is the continuing adventures of Free Anderson, a freed slave, and Parks Scott, a white ex-soldier, as they find themselves caught between the US Army that they supply mustangs from their S & A Mustang Works, and the Indian tribes that the Army is preparing to force onto reservations. Free and Parks take an opportunity to warn the Indians that an attack is imminent, but, eventually, the Army and the settlers prevail, and the Indian's winter grounds are destroyed. While this could easily be a story of heroes and villains, Kearby goes into the motivations behind the history, not using cardboard cut out figures, but give great thought to what was going on, and why. His use of historical figures, Indian languages, and the period all feel true, going beyond the western genre, and into historical fiction, with the emphasis on historical.

Book three of his Texas Western trilogy, "Ambush at Mustang Canyon," is a page-turner that finds Free and Parks caught up in the Indian Wars of the 1870s caused by the disappearing buffalo herds. Free and Parks fight for their lives at the Battle of Adobe Walls, and witness a series of skirmishes that are peopled with historically accurate and famous participants such as Billy Dixon and Quannah Parker. Mike Kearby writes in the forceful, gritty style of popular Western novelists like Max Brand and Elmer Kelton. With his deep knowledge of time and place, he should have a great big reading audience.

by Anita Barnes Lowen (Children's Literature) In the summer of 1874 war is about to break out. The native tribes of the Texas Panhandle have banded together determined to protect their way of life. The United States military is equally determined to carry out the official government policy to destroy the buffalo herds on which the tribes subsist and to force the tribes onto reservations. Into this conflict ride two men whose S & A Mustang Works provide horses to the army. Unwillingly they find themselves caught up in the battle of Adobe Walls, and, later, they become witnesses to the destruction of the native Americans' winter camp--a deed that crushed the soul of the native peoples. Free Anderson, a former slave, finds himself torn between the need to protect his wife and son and his wish to stop the destruction of the tribes wintering in canyon. While the story of Anderson and Scott is fictional, the book is based on actual events. This is the last book in the "Free Anderson-Park Scott" trilogy but can be read independently. A who's who list of characters at the beginning of the book would be helpful. At the end of the book, readers will find an author's note with information about what happened after the final battle as well as a glossary of Native American phrases and names, Spanish phrases and words, and wild west slang; there is also a list of discussion questions.

In the final book of his Texas history trilogy, Mike Kearby sends his protagonists Free Anderson and Parks Scott on another hair-raising adventure. Ambush at Mustang Canyon shows the two men negotiating two cultures and two very different ideas of right and wrong. When the U.S. military bullies them to run an errand for them, they salvage their conscience by taking the opportunity to warn the Indians of impending attacks. Though we know the facts of history--with the U.S. military might behind them, white settlers defeated the Indians and resettled them on reservations across the West, not just in Texas--Ambush at Mustang Canyon shows that in the quest to settle the West, there were no real heroes, just men trying to survive. This is a book for history buffs, the young at heart, and all of us who live in the West. But most of all, this is a great book for reluctant readers, young men ages 9-13. Kudos to Mike Kearby for a history trilogy sure to stoke their interest in history.

AMBUSH AT MUSTANG CANYON tells the story of the struggle to settle the West and accurately shows the motivation and issues of all the players in this great historical drama. This final book of the Free Anderson-Parks Scott trilogy (following The Road to a Hanging and Ride the Desperate Trail) finds the men caught up in conflict as the U. S. Army and the various Indian tribes battle over territorial rights. It's mainly the story of one man's struggle to live in peace and raise a family in post-Civil War Texas, but also of the unique friendship between a black ex-slave and a white ex-soldier that rounds up and sells mustangs. Free now has a homestead, and he and his wife, Clara, have a small son, and another child on the way. That story is told within the conflict involving the U. S. Army, the buffalo hunters, the Mexican rustlers, and the Kiowa, Comanche, and Cheyenne Indians, all of whom have a stake in the conflict, and different viewpoints of the desired outcome and the way it should be accomplished. Real characters from history join the two fictional characters in the skirmishes, and Kearby lets us see it from various viewpoints. Anderson and Scott don't always agree with the U. S. Army, but are committed to upholding the law of the land in trying to outwit the enemy in a way that results in the fewest casualties on both sides. AMBUSH AT MUSTANG CANYON is an electrifying, fast action story that is historically accurate, written for young adults, but with enough excitement to interest adult western and history fans. From the first attack on Britt Johnson, through the battles of Adobe Walls, Lost Valley, and Buffalo Wallow, Free and Parks are caught up in the conflict and in frequent danger of losing their own lives. Mr. Kearby includes a glossary in the back of the book with word, phrase, and name meanings in Kiowa, Cheyenne, Comanche, and Spanish languages. There is also a page with author's notes on history and a page of discussion questions to help gain better understanding of the history and theme of the story. Your reluctant reader would enjoy this exciting series. Reviewed by: Grandma Bev