Young Joseph has lost just about everything he loves and everyone who loves him. In the pioneer era in Washington state, this 12-year-old boy, orphaned after his family experiences tragedy after tragedy, now has lost his beloved pony, Sarah. After Sarah was wrongly taken from him and sold to a tyrant of a horse trader, Joseph will do anything to get her back. He chases after her across the state of Washington with nothing but his wits, his dad's handgun, and a handful of dollars he hopes to use to buy her back. He acquires a very unlikely companion: a Chinese boy who has also lost his people. Though they don't speak each other's language at all, the boys recognize they are kindred spirits and find ways to communicate and help each other--often having their very lives depend on the other. They face dangerous and deadly opposition along the way, testing their physical limits, courage, and resolve. But Joseph clings to the loving memories of family, the life-skills taught to him, and the wise words of his parents, who brought him up to be an honorable young man. These guide him in his efforts to find and get back his precious Sarah and, just maybe, to find new friends and family.Publisher description:
In 1890 Washington the only family Joseph Johnson has left is his half-wild Indian pony, Sarah, so when she is sold by a man who has no right to do so, he sets out to get her back--and he plans to let nothing stop him in his quest.