Death Waits at Sundown

Gr 7 Up—These three classic Western stories (Galaxy Press, 2012) by prolific writer L. Ron Hubbard were originally published in issues of the pulp magazine, Western Story, in 1938. "Death Waits at Sundown" tells of the Taylor brothers, Lynn and Lee. Framed for cattle rustling and murder, Lee is about to be hanged by a vigilante group. Aided by the former sheriff, Lynn turns the tables and saves his younger brother. "Ride 'Em, Cowboy!" is a light-hearted love story about rodeo stars, Long Tom and Vicky Stanton. In "Boss of the Lazy B," Spick Murphy kidnaps rancher Susan Price's kid brother after fooling her into having her lawyer father get him acquitted on charges of cattle rustling. When Susan comes to rancher Bill Bailey, begging him to rescue her brother, he exacts a stiff price—her hand in marriage. The full-cast narration, with full sound effects and a musical score, features Fred Tatasciore as the lead voice. These are well-done, entertaining tales, but because they were written more than 70 years ago, some terms used to describe minorities might be offensive to listeners.—John R. Clark, Hartland Public Library, ME