Bronco Dogs - Hardcover

Kindergarten-Grade 3-- Sixgun Gus and Cannonball Clyde, the Bronco Dogs, are the wildest outlaws in the West and best friends. They are such good friends that when Cannonball Clyde dies after falling off a cliff during a getaway, he comes back as a ghost to help guard their loot. Unfortunately, Cannonball discovers the truth of a prediction uttered by one of his victims, that bad dogs never rest. When Sixgun dies and joins his friend, the two rectify all their wrongs and finally rest in peace. This fast-paced tall tale is full of preposterous twists and turns to keep readers laughing. The text has a twang to it that reads aloud well but is still simple enough for independent readers, who will be encouraged by the large type. Shepherd's paintings predominantly feature the warm golds and reds of the Southwest, and are in a Saturday-morning cartoon style. Unusual perspectives, vivid hues, and busy swirls of paint reinforce the action and humor. Most of the pictures are large enough to use with groups, although the layout varies--some pages are best examined at close range. Fans of Joan Lowery Nixon's If You Say So, Claude (Warne, 1980) should especially enjoy the far-fetched hilarity of these two canine outlaws. --Danita Nichols, New York Public Library
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Sixgun Gus and Cannonball Clyde are mutts--and two of the cussedest varmints the Wild West has ever seen. Because of their ornery ways the folks out California way call them Bronco Dogs. The two buddies have themselves a time, riding and shooting and terrorizing folks. Stealing is just a sideline, but when they get a big haul, like the loot they acquire by robbing the First Cowgirl Bank, they ride for days and stash the loot at their Death Valley digs. These Cowgirls, however, are a bullheaded lot and pursue the two right to their hideout. When the loopy, lawless pair figure that the only thing that would scare these ladies is a ghost, Clyde accommodates the suggestion in dramatic fashion. This adventure-packed saga is filled with colorful language, and Shepherd's scruffy, expressive characters and technicolor landscapes capture the rip-roaring Western flavor of an old-time Saturday matinee. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.