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Lucy has been determined to return to her home in Massachusetts since her widowed mother moved her family to a small mining town in California to run a boarding house for rough and boisterous miners. Just as Cushman brought Medieval England to life in The Midwife's Apprentice and Catherine, Called Birdy, so she brings the western frontier to life using a strong-willed female protagonist. Lucy shares her miserableness and sense of injustice in this first person narrative, but it's the letters to her grandparents in Massachusetts that add a punch to the text.

Reviewed by Nancy S., Morrison Regional

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Reader's comments about this book

This humorous tale is from the view of a distressed pioneer, California Whipple. She hates her name almost as much as she hates the place she lives. So she changes it to Lucy Whipple. Through many trials and tribulations, Lucy realizes that life in the great west isn't the worst thing that could happen; and in fact, Lucy learns a great number of valuable lessons in her journey. Through and through, an enjoyable read! Another dazzling classic by Karen Cushman!
-Abby, Charlotte, NC

You must read this tragic story written in a humerous way. You won't be disappointed.
-Jori, Midlothian, VA

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