The Zebra-Riding Cowboy: A Folk Song from the Old West

When a handsome city slicker shows up at the Z-Bar Ranch to borrow a horse, the cowboys there decide to make him the butt of a joke, offering him Zebra Dun, the meanest bucking bronco they have, in a colorful version of a traditional cowboy song.

Kindergarten-Grade 4-- Bold illustrations for this old cowboy song masterfully set straight many myths about the Old West and its inhabitants. A ``citified,'' educated dude shows up at the Cimarron camp looking for a job. Conspiring to trick him, the cowpokes mount him on the meanest, orneriest horse around, the Zebra Dun. But for all the nasty moves Dunny makes, the stranger outwits him, forcing the chagrined cowboys to concede, ``Every educated fellow's not a plumb greenhorn.'' Brusca's bright, cartoon watercolors are packed with tall-tale action, campfire contrasts, and startling perspectives. The stylish, bespectacled African-American is surrounded by a wide ethnic variety of cowpunchers: Mexican, African, and Anglo-American. The musical score and Medearis's afterword explaining the motivation for and findings in her research will provide ideas for innumerable spin-off activities in music, drama, art, language arts, and social studies.
-Claudia Cooper, Ft. Stockton Independent School District, TX
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

A rollicking cowboy ballad tells the story of a stranger who the other cowboys suppose is a greenhorn: ``Such an educated fellow, his thoughts just came in herds;/ He astonished all the cowboys with jaw-breaking words.'' Thinking to show him up, they put him on the ``Zebra Dun,'' an unridable outlaw, but though ``We could see the tops of mountains under Dunny's every jump,/ ...the stranger seemed to grow there, just like a camel's hump.'' The lively watercolor illustrations depict an assortment of cowboys--African-American (notably, the stranger, whose striped trousers slyly suggest a reason for the manner of his hazing), Latino (including the boss), and white (the cook and a guitarist). An excellent note points out how common such mixes actually were, despite all-white media stereotypes. In an engaging final touch, the whole crew is seen happily reading the stranger's books. A nifty song, given a valid and intriguing new spin. Music included. (Music/Picture book. 5-10) -- Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.