A Bag of Lucky Rice

No one much expects Rusty to go out in the desert beyond Rhyolite, a small mining town in Nevada’s Amargosa Desert, and come home with the Mother Lode. No one, that is, except his two good Chinese friends, Lo Fat and Lee, and maybe his clever donkey Zeke. After all, Rusty’s is pretty much a one-man operation and even his digging tools don’t get much use (hence his name). But sure enough, on his first trip Rusty discovers a strongbox buried near a spring and in it enough nuggets of pure gold to pretty much buy the entire state.

Grade 4-8-A "desert rat" prospector named Rusty is the unlikely hero of this lighthearted historical tale set in an early 1900s Nevada mining town. When the old man finds a strongbox full of gold, he knows that his good fortune will last only as long as he keeps his wits. Rusty makes several trips to the bank in town, doing his best to keep the source of his gold a secret. He outsmarts several people along the way, including bandits, a Paiute tracker, and the town sheriff. He's aided on several occasions by his friends Lo Fat, a Chinese cook, and the man's clever son, Lee. Rusty also relies on his trusty mule on several occasions. There's a comfortable blend of engaging storytelling and dry humor as the prospector gets closer to transporting all of the gold. He uses some ingenious tricks that keep the townsfolk and readers guessing. At the same time, though, the events lead to some more significant changes in the town. By the time Lee and Lo Fat leave for San Francisco, some of the townspeople have learned something about not judging people by their appearance or background. With the folksy narration and several enjoyable plot twists, the strong message effectively sneaks up on readers. Throw in a perfectly timed earthquake, a rumored appearance by the Dalton gang, and a satisfying conclusion, and the result is an appealing choice for historical-fiction readers.
Steven Engelfried, Beaverton City Library, OR
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 4-6. Reichart takes a cast of Old West stereotypes--an old prospector, a Chinese cook, a clever donkey named Zeke, an Indian tracker, and outlaws named the Dalton Gang--and throws in some cowboy dialect and a few wry plot twists to give readers a "gol darnit," entertaining, old-fashioned cinematic melodrama. Rusty and Zeke shock everyone in Rhyolite, Nevada, when they haul into town bags of the gold they found in a trunk buried in the desert. The mystery of who hid the gold will keep kids guessing until it's logically explained. Reichart's narrative style fits the rough and tough times, and he weaves in threads about the development of the West, Chinese immigrants who built the Transcontinental Railroad, and issues surrounding acceptance of ethnic groups in the U.S. during the time. Small black-and-white sketches head each chapter. Humor and homespun logic come together here, making good fun. Julie Cummins
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