Dan Gemeinhart
Some Kind of Courage

This gripping tale of a 12-year-old boy in the Wild West moves you from the first page to the last.

Joseph has lost his mother, his father and his sister. The only thing he has left to his name is his Indian pony named Sarah, who is sold out from under him by his “foster father” to an unscrupulous horse dealer.

So, Joseph sets off, determined to go to get his horse back. Along the way he does things that adults, in particular, do not expect. He listens to his inner voice and remembers the advice from his beloved mother and his upstanding father, remembers the examples they set for him.

I was thinking about things we lose, and things we have to hold on to, and things we have to fight to get back.

If it comes to a fight, Joseph fights hard but always fair, even against those who are hostile towards him.

Written in vivid, youth-friendly language that is not at all vulgar, the book includes scenes that will make you laugh, smile, wonder and rejoice, but also ones that will leave you reaching for the tissues.

Highly recommended!

Ages 11 and up.

R.K. / G.K.

Joseph Johnson has lost just about everyone he’s ever loved. He lost his pa in an accident. He lost his ma and his little sister to sickness. And now, he’s lost his pony – fast, fierce, beautiful Sarah, taken away by a man who had no right to take her. Joseph can sure enough get her back, though. The odds are stacked against him, but he isn’t about to give up. He hasn’t lost hope. And he hasn’t lost the fire in his belly that says he’s getting his Sarah back – no matter what.

D.G.