The Misadventures of Maude March
Grade 5-8–This Wild West tale opens with Sallie March, 11, and her 15-year-old sister Maud living with Aunt Ruthie since the death of their mother. Maude is ladylike and proper, while Sallie fantasizes about the adventures in the dime novels she devours. When Aunt Ruthie is killed by a random bullet, the girls have problems with their new guardians. Having few other options, they set out on their own to find their uncle in Missouri. After a series of misunderstandings and more random incidents, the sisters find themselves on the wrong side of the law involved in robbery and murder, with Maude being written up in the papers as Mad Maude who has gone crazy with grief. Told from Sallie's perspective, Audrey Couloumbis's novel (Random, 2005) is a rollicking adventure like few others. Narrator Lee Adams draws listeners in with her realistic tone of voice and slow manner of speaking.  Sallie is clearly conveyed as spunky and smart, and Maude's moody temperament is made apparent through pitch and subtle inflections. While not fully voiced, listeners will have no trouble tracking the characters. This audio journey through the Wild West is not to be missed.–Stephanie A. Squicciarini, Fairport Public Library, NYCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.--This text refers to theAudio CDedition.