[.ca] The Pumpkin Rollers (ISBN 0812543998)

Where did the three star rating come from?:
I agree with everything the first two reviewers said, but I have no idea where the first guy got that three star rating. I'd hate to try to please him! The Pumpkin Rollers was a great book, as every Kelton book has been from the very beginning. There is only one rival to Kelton, and that is Kirby Jonas, whom critics call The New Louis L'Amour. If you haven't read any of his stuff, you're missing out the same way I was before I read Kelton. Kirby Jonas and Elmer Kelton rule the world of the western, without a doubt!

The Pumpkin Rollers:
The Pumpkin Roller's is an excellent book for anyone who enjoys hearing stories of the good old days. Any one who likes the thought of striking it new in a new area or cattle driving will enjoy this book. This book was so wonderful that I read it twice in the same week and still felt the need to read more of it. Anyone who picks it up will love it and should enjoy it for a long long time.

One of the best westerns ever written.:
This is one of the best westerns that I have ever read. The characters come alive and this author definitely is a studious expert in knowing human nature.Trey and Sarah McLean are wonderful characters, as well as all of the others who are in this story.Elmer Kelton fleshes them all out and there are no real minor characters. That, I believe, is where a lot of his true talent lies.

Light, relaxing, fast, enjoyable reading:
Having read everything published by L'amour, I searched for a western writer and am glad I found Kelton. Although he writes a different type of Western Novel, I am completely taken with his stories. Thanks for introducing me to a Texas I didn't know. The "Pumpkin Rollers" should appeal to all ages as its characters range in age from teens to seasoned citizens.

A "Pilgrim's Progress" set in the Great Plains:
Trey McLean, an innocent and adventurous young man, takes leave of his farming family in East Texas to seek his fortune among the cattle ranches and drives of still wild West Texas. After being cheated out of all his money, Trey quickly finds trust and honesty to be qualities lacking in too many of the people he meets. Encounters with a fanatical lawman, ruthless cattle barons, and common thieves only strengthen his determination to succeed. But, as in any good Western, there are the good guys, too. With their help, the skills he has he improves, and those he needs he goes after with both muscle and brain. Along the way, his path brings him to the home of the Starks and their daughter Sarah. He falls in love with her, but must leave her behind too soon when he hires on for his first cattle drive up to the railheads in Kansas. His growing love and the hope of returning to find Sarah waiting for him help Trey survive the daily trials of the trail. In Trey McLean, Kelton has created the Everyman of the early west, a common hero whose blunders and triumphs rein us in and would make us proud to ride in the saddle next to him.