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Summary
Summary
Newbery Award-winning author Susan Patron brings her talents to the beloved Dear America series in this exciting story of a girl growing up in the Wild West, in a California gold mining town.
Growing up in the wild gold-mining town of Bodie, California, in the 1880s, Angeline Reddy has seen it all -- saloons, brawls, and a whole lot of desperation. When her father, Bodie's greatest lawyer, is declared murdered, Angie knows deep in her heart that he isn't dead and decides it is up to her to solve the mystery of what happened to him. But when her mother takes ill and a mysterious ghost appears, putting together the puzzle pieces seems impossible. Not to mention, a gang of vigilantes, the 601, is raging out of control, running folks out of town, and nobody seems safe.
Will Angie, with the help of her friends Ellie and Ling Loi, and the mysterious and tragically handsome Antoine, be able to uncover the secret of her father's disappearance?
Author Notes
Susan Patron was born in Los Angeles, California in 1948. She worked as a children's services librarian at the Los Angeles Public Library for 35 years and is an acclaimed author of children's books, having won the Newbery Award for The Higher Power of Lucky in 2007.
Patron has served on numerous book award committees, is a member of the Advisory Board of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, and reviews children's literature.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (4)
Horn Book Review
In a book that is part mystery, part ghost story, Patron provides a multi-layered tale of one girl's experiences in the very wild West. Angie investigates the death of her father--who she doesn't believe is actually dead. She's a likable protagonist, and the many supporting characters give readers a good picture of life in a Gold Rush town as the boom turns to bust. (c) Copyright 2012. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
Patron returns to the locale of her Newbery-winning The Higher Power of Lucky (2006) in this Dear America series title set in Bodie, California, in 1880. Fourteen-year-old diarist and would-be dramatist Angeline Reddy does not believe her father, criminal lawyer Patrick Reddy, has been murdered. Convinced his disappearance is purposeful, Angie investigates his demise and tries to bring him back to their rough-and-tumble mining community. Assisted by friends, a dashing young Wells Fargo clerk, and the members of a local theater troupe, the witty and insouciant Angie offers a revealing look at frontier life especially preoccupations with thespian entertainments, racial and social prejudices, and vigilante justice. This complex novel, featuring multidimensional characters, is related in formal Victorian prose; Patron's style affects the tone of a comedic mystery/melodrama, well suited to the story's theme that people often hide their true selves (both good and bad) behind disguises. Appended with historical notes, period photos, and directions for making masks, this should appeal to fans of Sid Fleischman's Mr. Mysterious and Company (1962).--Weisman, Kay Copyright 2010 Booklist
School Library Journal Review
Gr 5-8-Angeline Reddy, 14, is distraught when her father, a criminal lawyer in a California gold-mining town in 1880, disappears and is declared dead by the local newspapers and coroner. Angie and her mother are sure that he is alive and enlist her pals Ellie and Ling Loi to help solve the mystery. When the friends see a ghost and witness a murder by a gang of vigilantes, Angie becomes even more desperate to find her dad. Patron does not shy away from gritty topics like brothels and includes real people among her cast of characters. (In a detailed historical note, she informs readers that Patrick and Emma Reddy were famous, but childless). A fast-paced, action-packed novel.-Terry Ann Lawler, Phoenix Public Library, AZ (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Excerpts
Excerpts
From Dear America: The Boldest Mask I knew there was trouble when I lifted up the lid of my father's coffin and he wasn't in it... Of course Momma hadn't for one minute believed the report of Papa's murder, which was supposed to have occurred on the stairway between Molinelli's Saloon and Papa's law office on the floor above. This news was delivered last night by a young clerk from the Wells Fargo & Co. office who said his name was Remi Nadeau. He said "Madame" to Momma and "Miss Angeline" to me, and explained that Wells Fargo was deeply saddened by our loss, which was also theirs. Mr. Nadeau regretted that the knife used by the murderer had not been found and there were no other clues. I wasn't sure whether the loss he spoke of was Papa's life or the valise full of scrip, $10,000 of a special currency created by the Standard Consolidated Mining Company. Of course those Standard Dollars, as we call them, were stolen and are missing. Excerpted from Behind the Masks: The Diary of Angeline Reddy - Bodie, California 1880 by Susan Patron All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.