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Title: Me and Billy
Author: James Lincoln Collier
Narrator: Alston Brown
Format: Unabridged
Length: 4 hrs and 40 mins
Language: English
Release date: 03-06-13
Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.
Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 3 votes
Genres: Teens, Ages 11-13
Publisher's Summary:
Life at Deacon Smiths Home for Waifs would be completely dreary if it werent for Possums best friend, Billy, who thinks up lies faster than he can talk and provides plenty of excitement for the other boys. When Billy hears that gold is hidden in the mountains - Great big chunks of it, some of em big as your fist - he plans to escape, taking Possum with him. The two runaways embark on a journey in search of their dream - the gold that will lead to a better life.
To earn enough money for their adventure, they join Professor Alberto Santini, savant of the healing arts, and his road show. The professor teaches the boys how spieling can make a buck, but its only the professor who seems to be earning any money.
Just as Possum and Billy realize that theyve been conned, they get tangled up in a murder. The boys try to keep ahead of the law as they continue their search for gold, but their friendship becomes strained as Possum begins to feel more and more different from Billy. Is the boys friendship strong enough to carry them through to the end of their journey?
Critic Reviews:
A small gem from an award-winning authorThe books momentum is sustained by the authors wonderful use of vernacular and the friendship / tension between the boys. (School Library Journal)
Elements of tall tale abound, and the language is fast and funny. (Booklist)
Set on the western frontier of the US in the time of horse-and-buggies, the story has a light tone and is often humorous, thanks to exaggeration, but it packs a wallop of exciting adventures and plot twists. Readers will recognize the extent, as Possum does, of Billys character flaws, but theyll still like him. A good read-aloud selection that may lead to discussion about likable rogues. (Kirkus Reviews)
Members Reviews:
Fun read
This is a cut story. It does not as some other reviewer think, claim to be great literature, Tow boys on a bit of an adventure, Like all good adventures at the end they learn a little about themselves and each other. After a lot of the junk I've waded though over the last several years this was a cute refreshing read.
great adventure for boys 10-15
This was a good book illustrating friendship,freedom and coming of age for boys. It is and easy read with twists and turns
Five Stars
Great book for young people. I bought it for my grandson and he loved it
A cute story with no defined end
This story about two orphaned boys trying to find that lake full of gold and partnering with a con artist to survive is a cute premise for a story. The two boys Billy and Possum are constantly saving their partner the Professor from the next attack. The older man teaches the two boys about life but in the end are drawn into a murder.
There is much struggle here between good and evil. The boys, especially Possum, learn that life on one's own isn't all that great all the time, and that they need help from others to achieve their dream, but how quickly life can throw punches! The longer the two boys stay with the professor, the more trouble they seem to get into and the more Possum realizes this is not the life he wishes to lead.
This all is a nice coming-of-age for young boys, with that constant battle between good and evil, but the end to this book seems so uncertain.
