This is a coming-of-age story about a troubled teenager sent to live and work with an older rancher. A turquoise bear carving, Cloyd’s Ute heritage and a dangerous mountain journey shape the story.
More about this book
A DRAMATIC TALE OF GRIZZLIES AND GOLD
Fourteen-year-old Cloyd Atcitty has been skipping school for years. He's run away from a group home for Native American boys, and is now being sent to work for Walter Landis, an old rancher on an isolated Colorado farm. In a cave above the ranch, Cloyd finds a turquoise carving of a bear. Knowing that his people, the Utes, have a special relationship with bears, he keeps the small stone, hoping it will bring him strength. A terrible blow-up with Walter ends in near disaster, but the old man offers Cloyd one last chance: They'll ride together into the mountains to reopen Walter's abandoned gold mine. Among the high peaks that harbor Colorado's last grizzlies, Cloyd's courage and loyalty will be tested to the limit.
trustintergenerational connectionsecond chancescourageloyaltycoming of ageUte heritage
Fiction
◎
Themes in Context
Cloyd’s developing connection with Walter
Cloyd is sent to work for Walter, an older rancher. After a serious clash, Walter offers him another chance and proposes a journey together.FavourableFavourable: the book presents this theme approvingly or positively.Favourable: the book presents this theme approvingly or positively.
How the book presents it: The setup presents renewed opportunity for connection as meaningful, while showing that the relationship includes conflict.
Talk about: What changes, if anything, in how Cloyd and Walter relate during their time together?
A journey that tests Cloyd
Cloyd keeps a turquoise bear carving, hoping for strength, before setting out with Walter towards an abandoned mine in grizzly country.Exploratory / explanatoryExploratory / explanatory: the book explains or explores the subject without an established evaluative position.Exploratory / explanatory: the book explains or explores the subject without an established evaluative position.
How the book presents it: The journey is framed as a test of courage and loyalty, linking Cloyd’s personal growth with the meaning he gives to his heritage and the carving.
Talk about: How does Cloyd understand strength as the journey unfolds?
✦
Why It May Be Worth Reading
The story places Cloyd’s isolation and past difficulties alongside the possibility of connection with an older adult. Its focus on courage and loyalty may prompt conversation about trust and second chances.
!
What Deserves Attention
Cloyd has a serious blow-up with Walter that ends in near disaster; the mountain setting also includes grizzlies. These elements bring conflict and physical danger into the story.
↔
A Conversation Worth Having
What might help Cloyd begin to trust Walter, and how do his Ute heritage and the bear carving shape the meaning he gives to strength?
◇
Reading Approach
Consider reading alongside your child, pausing after the clash or before the mountain journey to check how they are responding to the tension and danger.
Confidence & Basis
Theme indicators describe how the book presents a topic; they are not a verdict on the whole book or your family's values. Confidence reflects how much book-specific material was checked. Only part of the book information was available, so some details remain unconfirmed.
What remains unconfirmed
Cloyd’s developing connection with Walter: The ending and the longer-term shape of their relationship are not established.
A journey that tests Cloyd: The specific events of the journey and how Cloyd responds are not established.
Suitabook