MG - Longhorns and Outlaws (by Linda Aksomitis)

Paperback
22.9 x 14 cm (9 x 2.5 in)

Lucas Vogel is more interested in outlaws than the cattle they rustle. In fact, one of the faces he sees everywhere on outlaw posters looks strangely familiar...
Due to the tragic death of his parents, twelve-year-old Lucas Vogel finds himself on a cattle drive from Montana to Saskatchewan's Big Muddy badlands at the turn of the century. He's recently lost his Dutch immigrant parents in a devastating hurricane in Texas and has taken the train to Montana with his older brother Gil, a cowboy. Forced to leave their home, they need to make a living, and being cowboys will do that.

Longhorns and Outlaws was a winner in the Foreward Magazine Award for Juvenile Children’s Literature for 2008, announced at the 2008 Book Expo in New York City.

Prairie Books NOW said in an interview with Linda Aksomitis, “Sometimes a book fits its author like a worn saddle on a favorite horse —you can’t imagine one without the other…Aksomitis draws on more than her powerful imagination to create this historically accurate fictional world. it took three years of hardscrabble research for the author to sculpt a natural historical landscape.”

Resource Links listed Longhorns and Outlaws as one of the Best Books for 2008 in Fiction for Grades 3 – 6. Resource Links says: “Linda Aksomitis has written an outstanding historical novel for young readers…”

The Appaloosa Horse Club of Canada magazine says, “The author brings her first hand knowledge of the landscape, flora and fauna, and of the hardships and simple joys to be found in the saddle in the real west, making this work authentic, historically correct and a great read for young and old.

SWON Libraries (Southwest Ohio) says: “Strong characters, real wild west action and authentic facts about cowboys and horses make this an excellent adventure.”

Jim Schaeffer, Excecutive Director for Custer Country Montana says in the Billings Gazette, “Those unfamiliar with Eastern Montana will get a glimpse of the landscape of the region and a feel for the harsh conditions of life on the range. Written for younger readers, Longhorns and Outlaws can be enjoyed by adults as well.”

Wainwright Star Chronicle says: “Aksomitis weaves together a rich cowboy tapestry of horses, cows and ranch life…”

Prairie Fire Magazine says: “Young readers who are interested in cowboys, horses, or outlaws will enjoy Longhorns and Outlaws, and they’ll learn a lot about life in the early 1900s at the same time. ”

Children’s Bookwatch says, “Longhorns and Outlaws [is] a great western fiction for young children about to move onto standard chapter books.”

CM – Canadian Materials says, “Aksomitis establishes the archetype of the wide-eyed boy amid the vast, undiscovered American frontier by using vibrant descriptions of the landscape and animated supporting characters. The character of Gil provides a wonderful dynamic as the gruff and intolerant brother from whom Lucas predictably seeks approval. The author’s grasp of the Texas twang is dead-on and helps to transport the reader immediately into Lucas’s world. Trying to balance historic events in a work of fiction, particularly one intended for children, can appear clumsy if not treated carefully. Aksomitis achieves this feat with the effortless weaving of truth and fiction, not delving too far into the realm of fact, allowing the story to unravel without having to substantiate on every point. ”

Longhorns and Outlaws was one of only five novels for readers aged 9-12 featured in the 2008 McNally Robinson Books of the Season catalogue! McNally Robinson Booksellers say Longhorns and Outlaws is “A touching coming-of-age story and a fine account of frontier life in the early 1900s.”