The Arizona KidA trip out West to work at a racetrack — and a sojourn with a sophisticated gay uncle — bring unexpected discoveries in this quick-witted coming-of-age novel by the author of STONER & SPAZ and MARGAUX WITH AN X. I was in the West. The Old West. The Wild West! A whole summer in a new place: a place away from my parents, a place so hot the girls probably wore bikinis to church, a place where I'd take a giant step toward my dream: becoming a vet. A place where — who knows? — anything might happen. From the moment sixteen-year-old Billy steps off the train in Tucson, he knows this will be a summer unlike any he's seen in small-town Bradleyville, Missouri. For starters, he's staying with his cool gay uncle, who has managed to get him a job at the racetrack caring for horses. Still, Billy doesn't expect the horseracing world to be quite as rough and tumble as this — toiling side by side with a macho survivalist and falling hard for the feisty, romance-shy "exercise girl" Cara Mae. With his trademark fast-paced dialogue filled with wit and compassion, Ron Koertge tells the tale of an insecure teen who discovers that gaining stature involves more than Stetsons and boots — and that lessons on love and manhood come from the places you least expect. |
Contents
Section 1 | 27 |
Section 2 | 48 |
Section 3 | 87 |
Section 4 | 99 |
Section 5 | 125 |
Section 6 | 142 |
Section 7 | 163 |
Section 8 | 179 |
Section 9 | 208 |
Section 10 | 221 |
Section 11 | 230 |
Section 12 | 239 |
Section 13 | 260 |
Section 14 | 279 |
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Common terms and phrases
Abby anyway asked backstretch Billy Billy Kennedy boots Bradleyville C'mon Cara Mae Cara's chicken Chicken Little condoms cool couple cowboy cute Dark Mirage dollars door everything eyes feel felt filly Fletcher and Grif French Bred gila monster girl gonna grinned guess guys hair hand hell horse hundred Jack Jack's kissed knew laughed leaned legs Lew's looked mean minute Moon's Medicine never night nodded okay pants picked pretty pulled race Ron Koertge saddle shirt shit shook his head shoulder shrugged sleep slipped Snowbirds stall stared started stepped stood stopped stuff sure Suzette T-shirt talking tall Tanque Verde tell There's thing thought told tomorrow tonight Tony Lamas took toupee track trainer Tucson Turf Paradise turned Uh-huh uncle walked watched wearing What's whispered Yeah