Some Kind of Courage

Written by Dan Gemeinhart

Joseph Johnson has lost his father, mother, and sister to sickness and accident. The boy’s only family left on Earth is his beloved horse Sarah. When she is wrongfully sold behind his back to a shady horse trader, Joseph sets off on a desperate trek across the frontier towns and rough wilderness of 1890s Washington to reclaim her.

Gripping from the opening scene and moving at a galloping pace, this is a classic Western of a determined boy on an emotional, high stakes adventure. The character of Joseph is notable not only for his tenacity but for his moral goodness, as he battles to conduct himself according to standards of honesty and charity instilled in him by his parents, going out of his way to help people despite rough circumstances and the pull of his mission. The book sets itself apart from many traditional Westerns with its positive recognition of the diversity of the 19th century Western United States, particularly shown through Joseph’s relationship with Ah-Kee, a Chinese-American character who is his companion and friend through most of the adventure. I feel it needs mentioning that other reviewers have found that the depiction of Native American characters in the story problematic and partially reliant upon longstanding stereotypes. Partly because of this issue I don’t rate this title with the full 5 stars, but because of so many other positives I still highly recommend this book for fans of great adventure stories with heart.

Review by Joshua Whiting, Library Specialist, Granite EdTech Dept.
Rating: ★★★★✩ (4 stars)
Interest Level: Grades 4 and Up

Some Kind of Courage
Written by Dan Gemeinhart
Scholastic Inc.
234 pages
Release Date: January 26, 2016
A review copy was provided by the publisher.

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