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with illustrations by Peter Catalanotto

Is there anyone who has never wanted, needed, wished for, a second chance?  Eleven-year-old Iah Thomas has his reason—a painful reason.

It’s 1866 and Iah is visiting his aunt and uncle in the Dakota Territory. One night he witnesses the kidnapping of a girl, Vinca Hemshaw, whose well-to-do father is enmeshed in a dispute over water rights.  Too frightened to do anything then, Iah reluctantly takes a job as a deck hand on a steamer traveling down the Missouri River. That'll get him home to St. Louis.  But once the steamer is underway he finds the kidnapped girl.  Though she's surrounded by a tough lot, including the formidable “Bearclaw” Cole, this time Iah is determined to help her.  So it's two strong kids against a band of armed bullies and the outcome is not what you'd expect in your ordinary Western tale.  But then Upriver is anything but ordinary.

Told in the first person by Iah and reminiscent of Mark Twain, this exciting adventure captures the rich tones, unique vocabulary, and excitement of America’s post-Civil War West.

Available for publication from Breakfast Serials. If you don't know about this exciting new means of distributing great stories, head to their website. I'm thrilled to be one of the first authors they've published. This book began appearing in newspapers nationwide, in serialized format, in September 2006.

Spanish translation available.