He Will Go Fearless (review)

Fifteen-year-old Billy has just snuck off with a wad of his stepfather's cash and the seemingly unattainable goal of locating his birth father (who, last he heard, was mining in Montana) when he meets fellow travelers Rock and Jackson. Though Billy doesn't know the first thing about driving oxen, he agrees to join the two fellows on the somewhat daunting task of working as bullwhackers on a wagon train full of goods traveling from Missouri to Virginia City, Montana. The harrowing details of this particular style of nineteenth-century westward travel offer dramatic edge to this thrilling travelogue, and the visual descriptions paint a perilous picture of the challenges that lie before the workers (disagreeable oxen, impassable rivers, poor weather). Lawlor has created a wild and woolly cast of characters, from the dodgy but eloquent Jackson, to the sullen and sneaky Rock, to the elusive Frenchy, who joins the cattle train en route and plays a significant role in Billy's own self-discovery. The episodic nature of the journey makes for fast, riveting reading, while the comic relief provided by the escapades of the wagon train workers offers opportunity for an occasional chuckle. Readers won't be surprised that Billy and his father aren't ever reunited, but they will be startled by the ending, wherein Billy leaves the group on a solo mission to locate a horse and ends up tangled up in a stagecoach robbery. Lawlor's historical novel is largely based on the diaries of photographer William Henry Jackson; her adaptation of his imagery and experiences to the life of a teenage boy is remarkably successful, and readers will willingly hop on board with Billy to follow his adventure and growth. An author's note and map are included.