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Reviewed by:
  • The Prairie Thief
  • Jeannette Hulick
Wiley, Melissa . The Prairie Thief; illus. by Erwin Madrid. McElderry, 2012. 216p. Trade ed. ISBN 978-1-4424-4056-2 $15.99 E-book ed. ISBN 978-1-4424-4058-6 $9.99 R Gr. 4-6.

Young Louisa Brody has a big problem: her widowed pa has just been arrested for robbery, thanks to their unpleasant neighbor Mr. Smirch, who discovered some of his family's missing possessions in the Brodys' old dugout. Louisa and Pa have no idea how their neighbors' stuff (and some of their own) got into the dugout, but that mystery is solved when Louisa and her new friend, Jessamine, discover that a Scottish brownie named Mr. O'Gorsebush is responsible. Like the human residents of this rural Colorado community, the brownie is an immigrant, and he has been stockpiling the Brodys' and Smirches' possessions in an attempt to placate his absentee wife, who has been distraught since the death of Louisa's mother. As [End Page 120] a brownie, he also considers the items "payment" for his magical services rendered around the farms, unbeknownst to the Brodys or Smirches. Lousia soon realizes that she's between a rock and a hard place, as she can only save her father by revealing the identity of the "thief," which would be disastrous for Mr. O'Gorsebush. Luckily, some quick thinking and a sympathetic judge (whose housekeeper turns out to be Mr. O'Gorsebush's missing wife) save the day, and Pa is exonerated while the brownies' secret is kept safe. Frontier fiction and folkloric fantasy are an unusual combination, but they actually blend remarkably well here, and Wiley does a fine job of staying true to the pioneer inflections of Louisa's story while effectively integrating the magical brownies. Louisa is a strong and sympathetic heroine, and the sassy attitude of the brownies makes them good fun as well. The effective mashup of popular genres will make this a hit with a variety of readers, so try handing it to Little House fans and folktale-lovers alike. Occasional full-page black and white illustrations are a little dark and muddy, but their painterly style adds depth to the whimsy.

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