El. knyga: York's Ride: A Novel of Old California

In 1914, most of the world is focused on The Great War, but a much quieter story is taking place in a remote mountain region in northern California and western Nevada with the tale of two twelve-year-old boys and a legendary, wild horse from the desert. The stallion, Meshuga-part mustang and part giant Percheron draft -is a stallion so strong that he becomes a mythical, inspirational fable. Meshuga is destined to compete in a long-distance race through the mountains and valleys against the nation's best Arabian horses.Jim, an orphan, has moved to the West to live on his Uncle Martin and Aunt Hanna s ranch in the small, post-Gold Rush town of Taylorsville where the Sierra Nevada meets the Cascades. Mostly, Jim doesn t miss his family farm in Missouri, and when he s not doing ranch chores, he spends his time fly-fishing on nearby Indian Creek. This is where he first encounters York, a local boy from the Maidu tribe, and the two become fast friends. Jim and York soon meet up with Blind Charlie, a famous Maidu elder storyteller, who fills their heads with ancestral myths and legends.After the untimely death of York, Meshuga s caretaker, Jim is suddenly moved to take responsibility for the great black mustang and become part of Blind Charlie s prophecies. With York gone, Jim must fulfill what his friend knew all along that he and Meshuga would learn to conquer the challenge of the race of the century. A romantic novel of the Old West imbued with rich historical details, York s Ride is a complex and beautiful tale about family relationships and coming-of-age in early twentieth-century California.