Hirsch-s (The Royal Historian of Oz) Western comic offers wall-to-wall mayhem, from saloon brawls and train wrecks to a massive road race whose winner will get to meet the West-s most dangerous criminal. Gruff, coonskin-cap-wearing Opie and her younger brother, Ned, fend for themselves amid the chaos (some of which, admittedly, they cause). Opie-s chip-on-the-shoulder attitude hides shame: she feels responsible for their mother-s death, and she knows who their real father is, a secret she-s keeping from Ned. Sunny Ned, by contrast, trusts everyone. This would seem unwise in a Wild West full of ruffians, but it works. When faced with a mute giant of a man clad in bearskin, he asks, -How-d you get so big? Is that a real bear yer wearin-?- winning him a powerful friend. The allies Ned charms help the pair along the way until the final, mighty showdown. Hirsch-s art is a tornado of energy, the pace approaches mania (there-s even a Broadway-style musical number), yet Ned and Opie survive and grow in the midst of it. Give this to action-hungry readers and stand back. Ages 8-12. (Sept.)

Gr 4-6 Opie and her younger brother Ned travel through the Wild West to find the man who shot their mother. They begin to track a notorious criminal known as "Pa" and, along the way, meet an assortment of hardened criminals and sympathetic animals. Opie and Ned make a compelling pair. Opie is a tough survivor, while Ned's bratty behavior can't hide his loving, insightful side. The action doesn't stop: the children escape a train full of gangsters, win a horse race on a donkey, and run a criminal out of a hotel bar. Some of the scenes, easily recognizable as Wild West tropes by older readers, may be less appropriate for younger ones: the narrative opens with gambling and a bar brawl. The colorful cartoon illustrations aren't graphic, but Opie and Ned are threatened with guns multiple times. The siblings are white, and the few Native American and Mexican characters are incidental and often stereotypical. For instance, in the horse race, the children compete against "Joe Twelve Paw" and "Javieeer Ruiz." VERDICT With plucky protagonists, nonstop adventure, and slapstick humor, this tale has plenty of kid appeal, but its violence and use of stereotypes make it more appropriate for upper elementary readers. Lisa Goldstein, Brooklyn Public Library