In pre-Civil War America, Colton Westcott's life is nothing but trouble. He's on a wagon train to California when his Pa accidentally shoots him and then rides away. His baby brother dies, and his mother is sick. Twelve-year-old Colton and his two younger sisters try to keep their wagon rolling when a wheel breaks. Because his mother is black and his father is white, the other people on the wagon train won't help them. They finally get to a town with a doctor where Colton sees a help-wanted sign for the Pony Express. Maybe he could ride for the Pony Express, earn some money, and deliver freedom papers to Ma's sister, a runaway slave, in Sacramento. Follow Colton on the ride of his life, with dangerous mountains, storms, and people who might recognize that he's half-black.
Date read: 4/28/2009
ISBN-10: 0689871384
ISBN-13: 9780689871382
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