Bandit's Moon

This book by the funny Sid Fleishman is an action-packed adventure story, but also teaches readers a lot of California history. The heroine of this tale is the newly orphaned Annyrose. The girl's father died in the Mexican-American War and her mother died of a fever when she, Annyrose, and Annyrose's brother, Lank, were on their way to California. Misfortune drops Annyrose into the clutches of the awful O.O. Mary, who steals all of Annyrose's clothes, dresses her like a boy, and locks her in the harness shed. Annyrose's rescuer is none other than the bandit Joaquin Murieta (a true figure from the Gold Rush era). Annyrose ends up riding with Murieta's band to the gold diggins', all the while searching for her brother. Both Annyrose and show more the reader must debate many a moral issue on the journey: Is Murieta really a villain or is he another "Robin Hood" as many claim him to be? Were the Mexicans who were living in California wronged by the "Gringos" when California became part of the United States? Is stealing for a cause wrong? Fleishman added an author's note at the end of the book where he debates some of these issues. There are several black and white drawings by Jos. A. Smith that add visual interest to the story. show less

After a narrow escape from the clutches of nasty O. O. Mary, Annyrose ventures forth to find her long-lost brother, Lank, in gold-digging territory. But the journey is rough. Bandits and fiends wait for the traveler around every bend. Soon Annyrose runs into Joaquin Murieta, legendary bandit of the Gold Rush.

This seemingly disastrous meeting, however, soon appears to be a blessing for both. They can help each other out: Annyrose can teach Joaquin how to read so that he knows where danger may lie, and in turn he can make sure she's safe and fed. With a little compromise, the two realize how precious friendship is in a time when corruption and greed run wild.

Yeah, no. Does not work for me. She's with the bandits all that time and no one catches her squatting? First failure of suspension of disbelief. Then she walks into a general store in a tiny town on the edge of the gold diggings, and they just happen to have a full set of girl's clothes, that fit her? Failure of setting as well as of situation. And then, having had demonstrated over and over throughout the story that the newspapers get things wrong, she turns him in on the basis of a newspaper report that she starts out saying got things wrong? At that point I stopped being interested in her as a character. An improbably, conveniently happy ending rounded it off. I like quite a few of Fleischman's books, but this one was a flat failure show more for me. show less

This junior historical fiction book takes place in California in the mid-1800's. It's filled with adventure and excitement. The reading level is low enough to make enjoyable even for younger children, although with enough action and historical content to make it fun for all ages. It makes a great read-aloud too!

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