Yippee-ki-yay! Saddle up and hit the dusty trail with the wildest bike-ridin’ kid cowboys west of the Mississippi!
Slingshot and Burp—two pea-shootin’, slingshot-totin’ cowhands on two wheels—are on the lookout for action. Bleached bones? Bring ’em on! Lost outlaws? Let’s go! Hidden loot? Yee haw! Rattlesnakes! Scorpions! Ghost cats!Wait, what . . . ? Whoa! Saddled up to battle the boredom of summer, these two double cousins, best friends, and next-door neighbors have fitted themselves out like Old West cowboys to charge boldly (and sometimes bravely) into the southwestern desert that is their backyard. And sure enough, in two rattles of a snake’s tail, the boys find themselves boots-deep in adventure, dodging sisters, jail time, coyotes, and squirting skulls! Boll weevil!
Haynes keeps the action zipping along with his boys, who adopt the cowboy lifestyle as much as their parents will allow. He plays with expectations; readers convinced that the adventures are all in the boys' imaginations will reconsider after Burp finds a real scorpion in his boot. Gilpin's lively line drawings add plenty of character to the book...Active and entertaining, with a mid-20th-century feel.
—Kirkus Reviews
Lively illustrations help highlight the action of each chapter. Recommended as an additional purchase for libraries looking to increase their early chapter book collections and for those with a particular interest in cowboy stories.
—School Library Journal
Hayne’s episodic chapters gallop along as the intrepid amateur cowpokes explore the desert, find a (sort of) haunted skull, and rescue a dog they’re sure is part coyote. Gilpin’s cartoonish line drawings help bring the Wild West antics (many of which are imaginary) to life. Lasso-swinging, spur-wearing wannabe kiddie cowboys will be tickled.
—Booklist
Antagonistic older sisters, a blood-spitting lizard, and a legendary “Ghost Cat” all factor in to the boys’ adventures, which both Haynes and Gilpin paint as larger-than-life, even if real life occasionally intrudes (“Two lousy days in lockup,” is Slingshot’s response to getting grounded). It’s a boisterous tale that speaks to long summer days of (mostly) unfettered freedom.
—Publishers Weekly
