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The Tucket Adventures #1-5
Tucket's Travels: Francis Tucket's Adventures in the West, 1847-1849 (Books 1-5)
Fourteen-year-old Francis is heading west in a wagon train on the Oregon Trail when he’s kidnapped by Pawnees. His adventures during the two-year search for his family teach him how to live by the harsh code of the wilderness, and give readers an exciting panoramic vision of the West at a time of settlement and of war with Mexico. Along the way, Francis meets up with Mr. Grimes, a one-armed mountain man, and later rescues Lottie and Billy, children abandoned on the prairie. Together the three encounter bandits, soldiers, storms, eccentric travellers, and discover an ancient treasure. But the real treasure lies at the end of the trail—Tucket’s home.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
559 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 1, 2003
59 people are currently reading
460 people want to read
About the author
Gary Paulsen
408 books3,978 followersGary James Paulsen was an American writer of children's and young adult fiction, best known for coming-of-age stories about the wilderness. He was the author of more than 200 books and wrote more than 200 magazine articles and short stories, and several plays, all primarily for teenagers. He won the Margaret Edwards Award from the American Library Association in 1997 for his lifetime contribution in writing for teens.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 62 reviews
February 3, 2023
Reminiscent of Sid Fleischman's work, Tucket's Travels: Francis Tucket's Adventures In the West, 1847-1849 is a rollicking tale of mountain men, crafty Indians, and open frontier country. Francis Alphonse Tucket's fourteenth birthday is spent among family and friends on the Oregon Trail, moving to their new home out West in 1848. But his comfortable life is upended when he strays from his family's wagon to try out the new .40 caliber Lancaster rifle his father gave him as a present, and Francis is abducted by Pawnee braves. He awakens in the Indians' camp, seemingly the possession of an old woman who yanks him around by a rope tied to his neck. The Pawnees don't kill him, but the boys love wrestling and use dirty tactics, and the squat, somber Indian known as Braid is dangerous. Francis's hope stirs when a white man from the mountains rides into camp, but he's just a fur trader; why would he risk his business with the Pawnees by liberating Francis?
Yet that's precisely what Jason Grimes—Mr. Grimes—does. Waking Francis from a sound sleep that night, he points him to a fresh horse and prescribes an escape route, if Francis can get out of camp without drawing attention. Every minute is crucial as the boy's horse pounds across the plains toward safety beyond the river bend. Francis rides until exhaustion overcomes him and he's thrown from his mount, then continues on foot after the horse runs away. The Pawnees are tenacious, but Francis's luck holds, and he reunites with Mr. Grimes after the danger is passed. The mountain man is used to traveling alone, but he's amenable to Francis joining him until he finds his family. The boy has much to learn about the Wild West.
Francis—Mr. Tucket, as Mr. Grimes calls him— still has his Lancaster rifle, but he's as green a marksman as they come. The mountain man trains him to hunt rabbits, antelope, and other game. He educates him in the finer points of building temporary shelter against sweltering heat or blistering cold, and how to avoid encounters with Indians. Mr. Grimes steers Francis toward forgetting revenge against the Pawnees and making the most of his situation. It will take a while to locate Francis's family, but in the meantime he should sharpen his skills on the great Western plains. Francis learns a lifetime of lessons from Mr. Grimes in a few weeks, but the enduring lesson is one Francis won't absorb until he sees tragedy transform Mr. Grimes into another sort of man. Does Francis want to be like his mentor, or is there a better life with his family in Oregon?
What Francis learns in Mr. Tucket comes mostly from Mr. Grimes's example rather than wise words, and the story takes this same approach with the reader. Before he lost his family, Francis ate when hungry, but now he stuffs himself whenever there's food in front of him. "He was learning that when you can eat, you eat. It might be a couple of days before you got a chance to eat again." An abundance right now is no guarantee of the same tomorrow. Food, water, affection...soak it up while it's there, or you'll regret not doing so. There are four more books in Tucket's Travels, and so we move on to Call Me Francis Tucket.
Francis doesn't miss a beat as he parts ways with Jason Grimes and continues the search for his parents and younger sister, Rebecca. Mr. Grimes taught Francis lessons he couldn't survive without, and he uses his new hunting and tracking skills to pursue his family. Francis possesses a strong young mare, the Lancaster rifle his father gave him, and not much else, but the situation worsens when Francis is seized by a pair of wandering outlaws. Courtweiler is a soft-spoken man of no respect for society's laws, and Dubs is a towering giant. The men relieve the boy of his horse, rifle, food, and shirt, but Francis can't allow them to leave him in the dusty plains with nothing besides their scrawny mule. He'll die, so Francis stalks his tormentors to take back what they stole. To Francis's surprise the mule follows him the many miles to where the two thieves bed down for the night. A tense struggle ensues over the mare and Francis's other belongings, but Courtweiler and Dubs no longer have the element of surprise, and Francis is motivated to avenge what they did to him earlier. The scraggly mule turns out to be a valuable ally.
Searching for pioneer wagon trains is Francis's priority as he returns to the trail, but he doesn't find many, let alone the one his family is with. Then he spots an abandoned wagon in the wilderness, silent as the grave. He expects an ambush or a deadly creature holed up in the wagon, but he's taken aback by what it contains: two children. Lottie is eight or nine, a nervous chatterer once she gets going, and her brother Billy is hardly five or six, and totally silent. Their wagon train deserted them and their pa when he fell ill with cholera, and he left the wagon before the bacteria could kill him in front of his children. Francis has no idea how to take care of kids, but he still has Courtweiler's mule, so he puts the blonde, freckle-faced youngsters on the animal's back and sets off with not more than a faint plan in mind.
How does a teenage boy adapt to being an ersatz parent? Francis needs to find his family, but he has to prioritize Lottie and Billy or he might as well have left them in the wagon. They trust him to protect them against a cynical world that has done them terribly wrong. When Francis thinks he's set Lottie and her brother up in a decent situation, better than traipsing across the barren plains with a teen who has no clue where he's going, doubts continue to nag at him. Will Lottie and Billy be okay with the couple he entrusted them to, or has he put them in position to be exploited? Francis can't be sure, but he won't fail these kids now. He'll ensure their security and well-being even if he has to kidnap them back and assume longterm guardianship despite his reservations.
Hope of a family reunion spurs Francis on through all his troubles, but the journey has provided a few companions he may not want to say goodbye to, and I have a feeling Lottie, Billy, and the mule will stay beside Francis longer than Mr. Grimes. Call Me Francis Tucket leads smoothly into book three, Tucket's Ride.
Trouble has repeatedly found now fifteen-year-old Francis, but the adversity he faces next is more daunting than anything so far. With a mare and a mule to carry himself, Lottie, and Billy, they have traveled a great distance south into Mexican land, with the goal of swinging back up to the Oregon Trail and locating Francis's family. The resourceful teen's hope for peaceful passage through Mexico is quashed when they come upon an American soldier forcing himself on a Mexican woman. The man shoots his gun at Francis, who is forced to return fire, and seconds later young Mr. Tucket has taken a human life for the first time. What will he do with the soldier's body?
Unwittingly, Francis has wandered into a war between the U.S. and Mexico. The fighting is mostly over, but American officers are still stationed here for administrative purposes. Francis would like to gallop away with Lottie and Billy, hoping the lecherous soldier's death is never connected to him, but running seems wrong. He peacefully surrenders to a posse of American soldiers who escort him to the city of Taos. It briefly looks as though Francis will get the hangman's noose, but justice is eventually served in roundabout fashion. Francis's weapons, food, and other supplies are richly replenished before he returns to the trail with Lottie and Billy, but he doesn't realize they're entering one of the most dangerous parts of the country.
Francis fears Indians because it was Pawnees who stole him from his family on the Oregon Trail. Worse than any Indians, however, are the Comancheros, outlaws who trade illegal goods with members of the Comanche nation. Francis, Lottie, and Billy don't stand a chance: a band of Comancheros takes them prisoner, confiscating Francis's rifle. Comancheros are notorious for pushing their horses to run for days through rough wilderness land, with no more than a few minutes' rest here and there. Like the Comancheros, Francis, Lottie, and Billy learn to sleep while riding, but the journey is torturous as they head further into the isolated badlands the Comancheros call home. Even if Francis weren't exhausted to the point of delirium, escape is impossible; the cruel, unnaturally efficient Comancheros would catch up within a few hours, if not minutes. Francis and the two kids he loves like siblings are doomed to be traded to the Comanches, who will work them as slaves for the rest of their lives. But though trouble habitually seeks Francis, it's usually accompanied by opportunity: a glimmer of hope exists to get away from the Comancheros, provided Francis's luck holds. Will he, Lottie, and Billy ever ride free again?
Tucket's Travels reads more like a Western serial than the sequence of five novels it originally was. Tucket's Ride picks up not long after book two, and has an open ending that leads right into book four, Tucket's Gold. In between, Francis participates in shootouts, negotiates with military types, suffers at the hands of Old West bad'uns, and has a serendipitous reunion with a familiar face. A lot can go horribly wrong in the lawless West; Francis needs heaping helpings of good luck, and he always seems to get just enough to have a chance of surviving. Where will the story take us next?
Book four commences with Francis, Lottie, and Billy in a heap of trouble on the Western frontier. Their escape from the cruel Comancheros could not have happened without one-armed mountain man Jason Grimes, who led the villains in another direction as Francis and the children ran the other way on foot. They have eluded the Comancheros for now, but aren't in the clear. The bad guys could stop chasing Grimes and pick up Francis's trail at any moment, and surviving the desert is hard enough without stone-cold killers after you. In the distance Francis sees thick dust in the air, as though kicked up by horses headed their way, but he has to concentrate on finding fresh water and meat for Lottie and Billy. Maybe the dust isn't the sure sign it seems to be that the Comancheros are coming.
There's no shelter from the rainstorm when it hits, but Francis couldn't be happier. The torrent washes out their tracks so the Comancheros don't have a path to follow. Lightning may even have levied its own attack against the marauders. When Francis and the two kids bed down for the night by a river, the last thing they expect is to discover a human skeleton under a shallow overhang. Francis can only speculate how the man died, but what he uncovers behind him is astonishing: a bag of silver and gold bars worth a king's fortune. Surviving to benefit from the treasure is an iffy proposition, but Francis takes a couple of the bars and buries the rest to dig up later. They're too heavy to carry all at once, but if he can buy a horse to help bear the load, money will never again be an issue.
Luck is a whimsical lady who has often toyed with Francis, but she smiles on him as he, Lottie, and Billy come across a herd of six horses abandoned on the frontier. Francis and the kids ride back, claim the gold, then resume their northwestern trek in hopes of reuniting with Francis's parents on the Oregon Trail. Francis hardly believes his eyes when a castle-like structure appears on the horizon. He's wary what the inhabitants might be like—are they white or Indian, hostile or peaceful?—and as he ventures ahead to scout the place, calamity strikes. The Wild West is full of dangers, and Francis has fallen prey to one of them. He's much more resourceful than when the Pawnees first kidnapped him, but can he win this breakneck race with death? The castle is the only place to go if he's to have a prayer of surviving, but what awaits him there? Francis needs another smile from Lady Luck, and even then an old adversary may return and derail his journey home. The great West is strewn with lethal traps to fall into, but Francis has every motivation to overcome them, and one more book to do so. Does he have it in him to endure a final round of adventures?
I love Gary Paulsen's instinct to show rather than tell, which makes the scenes feel more immediate. Francis's fear when the Comancheros are close to catching them, or the desperation of wandering in the desert without water or food, pull us into the story. After a year on the frontier, Francis understands what it takes to survive. "(H)e had learned the primary rule about danger. It would come if it would come. You could try to be ready for it, you could plan on it, you could even expect it, but it would come when it wanted to come." No human can thwart all potential hazards, and the better part of wisdom is recognizing that. By expecting to be outwitted, you're prepared to improvise however necessary to live to see tomorrow. How will Gary Paulsen draw the series to a close in Tucket's Home?
With less than a hundred pages separating fifteen-year-old Francis Tucket from the end of his odyssey, the reader wonders: will his journey home turn out the way Francis has hoped? Will he survive to reunite with his family out west...and are they all alive? Francis relies on Lottie and Billy to hunt and to keep watch for danger, but he grows worried when a band of five rogue U.S. soldiers enters the region, committing acts of violence more heinous than even the Comancheros. Francis is desperate to keep Lottie and Billy out of harm's way, but the crazed men are coming, and a unique sort of savior may be required.
Did Jason Grimes survive his run-in with the Comancheros? He did, but even Grimes may not be able to defeat these rogue soldiers without losing his own life. Would he sacrifice everything for Francis and the kids? Would Francis even want him to? As they travel further west, Francis, Lottie, and Billy meet a group of religious travelers led by a man named Orson. Joining the pilgrims as they head for Oregon is a smart move, but there's still no guarantee against calamity.
Such a brief distance separates Francis from where his long-lost parents intended to settle, but the frontier is fraught with hazard. Francis stews over what will happen if Orson discovers the gold Francis carries. These are moral, religious men, not likely thieves, but who knows what greed can do in the human heart? There is also the Columbia River to contend with, a wide, glistening band of death that threatens to kill any traveler who tries to ford it. Will Francis listen to the warnings of local Indians and not attempt the crossing, opting for a longer route? What a tragedy it would be to die so close to a potential reunion with his parents and younger sister...but has Francis been fated for such an ending all along?
Frontier life in 1800s America was savage. Being a child or teenager did not insulate you from nature or from evil men, and Tucket's Travels doesn't sugarcoat the truth. The bleakness is captured in words spoken by Lottie after a devastating moment late in Tucket's Home. "Is it to be like this always?" she asks through tears. "Just always so hard, so that it crushes people?" But the United States of a hundred years later and more would yield the fruit of these pioneers' sacrifice. The West became easy to travel to and from, a place of innovation and prosperity completely different from the wasteland that killed many wagoneers in the 1800s. This could never have been were it not for those who took their lives in their hands to come out west before it was safe, blazing the trail for a future greater than they could imagine. It is this spirit of adventure and progress that Tucket's Travels celebrates.
There are a few memorable emotional encounters, but Tucket's Home feels rushed at the end, as though Gary Paulsen had a page limit he was not permitted to exceed. As a result the story climax feels muted, though as a whole, Tucket's Travels is a powerful emotional journey; I'd rate it three and a half stars, and almost rounded to four. The fact that it was originally five separate novels is evident at the beginning of each book, where basic story information is restated over and over, but that's a minor flaw. If I were to rank the five books, Tucket's Home might be at the top, with Mr. Tucket, Call Me Francis Tucket, and Tucket's Ride in a virtual tie among themselves. Perhaps I favor Call Me Francis Tucket, because of the gravitas added by the introduction of Lottie and Billy, whom I love. Tucket's Gold is the only book I consider somewhat lesser than the others, but not by much. Tucket's Travels is a superb omnibus, and Gary Paulsen deserves to be spoken more highly of as a writer of Westerns. He was a unique man.
Yet that's precisely what Jason Grimes—Mr. Grimes—does. Waking Francis from a sound sleep that night, he points him to a fresh horse and prescribes an escape route, if Francis can get out of camp without drawing attention. Every minute is crucial as the boy's horse pounds across the plains toward safety beyond the river bend. Francis rides until exhaustion overcomes him and he's thrown from his mount, then continues on foot after the horse runs away. The Pawnees are tenacious, but Francis's luck holds, and he reunites with Mr. Grimes after the danger is passed. The mountain man is used to traveling alone, but he's amenable to Francis joining him until he finds his family. The boy has much to learn about the Wild West.
Francis—Mr. Tucket, as Mr. Grimes calls him— still has his Lancaster rifle, but he's as green a marksman as they come. The mountain man trains him to hunt rabbits, antelope, and other game. He educates him in the finer points of building temporary shelter against sweltering heat or blistering cold, and how to avoid encounters with Indians. Mr. Grimes steers Francis toward forgetting revenge against the Pawnees and making the most of his situation. It will take a while to locate Francis's family, but in the meantime he should sharpen his skills on the great Western plains. Francis learns a lifetime of lessons from Mr. Grimes in a few weeks, but the enduring lesson is one Francis won't absorb until he sees tragedy transform Mr. Grimes into another sort of man. Does Francis want to be like his mentor, or is there a better life with his family in Oregon?
What Francis learns in Mr. Tucket comes mostly from Mr. Grimes's example rather than wise words, and the story takes this same approach with the reader. Before he lost his family, Francis ate when hungry, but now he stuffs himself whenever there's food in front of him. "He was learning that when you can eat, you eat. It might be a couple of days before you got a chance to eat again." An abundance right now is no guarantee of the same tomorrow. Food, water, affection...soak it up while it's there, or you'll regret not doing so. There are four more books in Tucket's Travels, and so we move on to Call Me Francis Tucket.
Francis doesn't miss a beat as he parts ways with Jason Grimes and continues the search for his parents and younger sister, Rebecca. Mr. Grimes taught Francis lessons he couldn't survive without, and he uses his new hunting and tracking skills to pursue his family. Francis possesses a strong young mare, the Lancaster rifle his father gave him, and not much else, but the situation worsens when Francis is seized by a pair of wandering outlaws. Courtweiler is a soft-spoken man of no respect for society's laws, and Dubs is a towering giant. The men relieve the boy of his horse, rifle, food, and shirt, but Francis can't allow them to leave him in the dusty plains with nothing besides their scrawny mule. He'll die, so Francis stalks his tormentors to take back what they stole. To Francis's surprise the mule follows him the many miles to where the two thieves bed down for the night. A tense struggle ensues over the mare and Francis's other belongings, but Courtweiler and Dubs no longer have the element of surprise, and Francis is motivated to avenge what they did to him earlier. The scraggly mule turns out to be a valuable ally.
Searching for pioneer wagon trains is Francis's priority as he returns to the trail, but he doesn't find many, let alone the one his family is with. Then he spots an abandoned wagon in the wilderness, silent as the grave. He expects an ambush or a deadly creature holed up in the wagon, but he's taken aback by what it contains: two children. Lottie is eight or nine, a nervous chatterer once she gets going, and her brother Billy is hardly five or six, and totally silent. Their wagon train deserted them and their pa when he fell ill with cholera, and he left the wagon before the bacteria could kill him in front of his children. Francis has no idea how to take care of kids, but he still has Courtweiler's mule, so he puts the blonde, freckle-faced youngsters on the animal's back and sets off with not more than a faint plan in mind.
How does a teenage boy adapt to being an ersatz parent? Francis needs to find his family, but he has to prioritize Lottie and Billy or he might as well have left them in the wagon. They trust him to protect them against a cynical world that has done them terribly wrong. When Francis thinks he's set Lottie and her brother up in a decent situation, better than traipsing across the barren plains with a teen who has no clue where he's going, doubts continue to nag at him. Will Lottie and Billy be okay with the couple he entrusted them to, or has he put them in position to be exploited? Francis can't be sure, but he won't fail these kids now. He'll ensure their security and well-being even if he has to kidnap them back and assume longterm guardianship despite his reservations.
Hope of a family reunion spurs Francis on through all his troubles, but the journey has provided a few companions he may not want to say goodbye to, and I have a feeling Lottie, Billy, and the mule will stay beside Francis longer than Mr. Grimes. Call Me Francis Tucket leads smoothly into book three, Tucket's Ride.
Trouble has repeatedly found now fifteen-year-old Francis, but the adversity he faces next is more daunting than anything so far. With a mare and a mule to carry himself, Lottie, and Billy, they have traveled a great distance south into Mexican land, with the goal of swinging back up to the Oregon Trail and locating Francis's family. The resourceful teen's hope for peaceful passage through Mexico is quashed when they come upon an American soldier forcing himself on a Mexican woman. The man shoots his gun at Francis, who is forced to return fire, and seconds later young Mr. Tucket has taken a human life for the first time. What will he do with the soldier's body?
Unwittingly, Francis has wandered into a war between the U.S. and Mexico. The fighting is mostly over, but American officers are still stationed here for administrative purposes. Francis would like to gallop away with Lottie and Billy, hoping the lecherous soldier's death is never connected to him, but running seems wrong. He peacefully surrenders to a posse of American soldiers who escort him to the city of Taos. It briefly looks as though Francis will get the hangman's noose, but justice is eventually served in roundabout fashion. Francis's weapons, food, and other supplies are richly replenished before he returns to the trail with Lottie and Billy, but he doesn't realize they're entering one of the most dangerous parts of the country.
Francis fears Indians because it was Pawnees who stole him from his family on the Oregon Trail. Worse than any Indians, however, are the Comancheros, outlaws who trade illegal goods with members of the Comanche nation. Francis, Lottie, and Billy don't stand a chance: a band of Comancheros takes them prisoner, confiscating Francis's rifle. Comancheros are notorious for pushing their horses to run for days through rough wilderness land, with no more than a few minutes' rest here and there. Like the Comancheros, Francis, Lottie, and Billy learn to sleep while riding, but the journey is torturous as they head further into the isolated badlands the Comancheros call home. Even if Francis weren't exhausted to the point of delirium, escape is impossible; the cruel, unnaturally efficient Comancheros would catch up within a few hours, if not minutes. Francis and the two kids he loves like siblings are doomed to be traded to the Comanches, who will work them as slaves for the rest of their lives. But though trouble habitually seeks Francis, it's usually accompanied by opportunity: a glimmer of hope exists to get away from the Comancheros, provided Francis's luck holds. Will he, Lottie, and Billy ever ride free again?
Tucket's Travels reads more like a Western serial than the sequence of five novels it originally was. Tucket's Ride picks up not long after book two, and has an open ending that leads right into book four, Tucket's Gold. In between, Francis participates in shootouts, negotiates with military types, suffers at the hands of Old West bad'uns, and has a serendipitous reunion with a familiar face. A lot can go horribly wrong in the lawless West; Francis needs heaping helpings of good luck, and he always seems to get just enough to have a chance of surviving. Where will the story take us next?
Book four commences with Francis, Lottie, and Billy in a heap of trouble on the Western frontier. Their escape from the cruel Comancheros could not have happened without one-armed mountain man Jason Grimes, who led the villains in another direction as Francis and the children ran the other way on foot. They have eluded the Comancheros for now, but aren't in the clear. The bad guys could stop chasing Grimes and pick up Francis's trail at any moment, and surviving the desert is hard enough without stone-cold killers after you. In the distance Francis sees thick dust in the air, as though kicked up by horses headed their way, but he has to concentrate on finding fresh water and meat for Lottie and Billy. Maybe the dust isn't the sure sign it seems to be that the Comancheros are coming.
There's no shelter from the rainstorm when it hits, but Francis couldn't be happier. The torrent washes out their tracks so the Comancheros don't have a path to follow. Lightning may even have levied its own attack against the marauders. When Francis and the two kids bed down for the night by a river, the last thing they expect is to discover a human skeleton under a shallow overhang. Francis can only speculate how the man died, but what he uncovers behind him is astonishing: a bag of silver and gold bars worth a king's fortune. Surviving to benefit from the treasure is an iffy proposition, but Francis takes a couple of the bars and buries the rest to dig up later. They're too heavy to carry all at once, but if he can buy a horse to help bear the load, money will never again be an issue.
Luck is a whimsical lady who has often toyed with Francis, but she smiles on him as he, Lottie, and Billy come across a herd of six horses abandoned on the frontier. Francis and the kids ride back, claim the gold, then resume their northwestern trek in hopes of reuniting with Francis's parents on the Oregon Trail. Francis hardly believes his eyes when a castle-like structure appears on the horizon. He's wary what the inhabitants might be like—are they white or Indian, hostile or peaceful?—and as he ventures ahead to scout the place, calamity strikes. The Wild West is full of dangers, and Francis has fallen prey to one of them. He's much more resourceful than when the Pawnees first kidnapped him, but can he win this breakneck race with death? The castle is the only place to go if he's to have a prayer of surviving, but what awaits him there? Francis needs another smile from Lady Luck, and even then an old adversary may return and derail his journey home. The great West is strewn with lethal traps to fall into, but Francis has every motivation to overcome them, and one more book to do so. Does he have it in him to endure a final round of adventures?
I love Gary Paulsen's instinct to show rather than tell, which makes the scenes feel more immediate. Francis's fear when the Comancheros are close to catching them, or the desperation of wandering in the desert without water or food, pull us into the story. After a year on the frontier, Francis understands what it takes to survive. "(H)e had learned the primary rule about danger. It would come if it would come. You could try to be ready for it, you could plan on it, you could even expect it, but it would come when it wanted to come." No human can thwart all potential hazards, and the better part of wisdom is recognizing that. By expecting to be outwitted, you're prepared to improvise however necessary to live to see tomorrow. How will Gary Paulsen draw the series to a close in Tucket's Home?
With less than a hundred pages separating fifteen-year-old Francis Tucket from the end of his odyssey, the reader wonders: will his journey home turn out the way Francis has hoped? Will he survive to reunite with his family out west...and are they all alive? Francis relies on Lottie and Billy to hunt and to keep watch for danger, but he grows worried when a band of five rogue U.S. soldiers enters the region, committing acts of violence more heinous than even the Comancheros. Francis is desperate to keep Lottie and Billy out of harm's way, but the crazed men are coming, and a unique sort of savior may be required.
Did Jason Grimes survive his run-in with the Comancheros? He did, but even Grimes may not be able to defeat these rogue soldiers without losing his own life. Would he sacrifice everything for Francis and the kids? Would Francis even want him to? As they travel further west, Francis, Lottie, and Billy meet a group of religious travelers led by a man named Orson. Joining the pilgrims as they head for Oregon is a smart move, but there's still no guarantee against calamity.
Such a brief distance separates Francis from where his long-lost parents intended to settle, but the frontier is fraught with hazard. Francis stews over what will happen if Orson discovers the gold Francis carries. These are moral, religious men, not likely thieves, but who knows what greed can do in the human heart? There is also the Columbia River to contend with, a wide, glistening band of death that threatens to kill any traveler who tries to ford it. Will Francis listen to the warnings of local Indians and not attempt the crossing, opting for a longer route? What a tragedy it would be to die so close to a potential reunion with his parents and younger sister...but has Francis been fated for such an ending all along?
Frontier life in 1800s America was savage. Being a child or teenager did not insulate you from nature or from evil men, and Tucket's Travels doesn't sugarcoat the truth. The bleakness is captured in words spoken by Lottie after a devastating moment late in Tucket's Home. "Is it to be like this always?" she asks through tears. "Just always so hard, so that it crushes people?" But the United States of a hundred years later and more would yield the fruit of these pioneers' sacrifice. The West became easy to travel to and from, a place of innovation and prosperity completely different from the wasteland that killed many wagoneers in the 1800s. This could never have been were it not for those who took their lives in their hands to come out west before it was safe, blazing the trail for a future greater than they could imagine. It is this spirit of adventure and progress that Tucket's Travels celebrates.
There are a few memorable emotional encounters, but Tucket's Home feels rushed at the end, as though Gary Paulsen had a page limit he was not permitted to exceed. As a result the story climax feels muted, though as a whole, Tucket's Travels is a powerful emotional journey; I'd rate it three and a half stars, and almost rounded to four. The fact that it was originally five separate novels is evident at the beginning of each book, where basic story information is restated over and over, but that's a minor flaw. If I were to rank the five books, Tucket's Home might be at the top, with Mr. Tucket, Call Me Francis Tucket, and Tucket's Ride in a virtual tie among themselves. Perhaps I favor Call Me Francis Tucket, because of the gravitas added by the introduction of Lottie and Billy, whom I love. Tucket's Gold is the only book I consider somewhat lesser than the others, but not by much. Tucket's Travels is a superb omnibus, and Gary Paulsen deserves to be spoken more highly of as a writer of Westerns. He was a unique man.
June 2, 2018
You guys, I have no idea how many times I've read this bind-up of books, but omg it was my FAVE when I was a youngish teenager! I still have my copy because I have such fond memories of this story, and these characters.. I think I was reading it once a month at some point (or at least that was my goal; not sure if I ever accomplished it, lol).
5 stars!
5 stars!
December 26, 2012
This was a fun, fast read. I finished the whole book in a few hours on Christmas Eve, so it's not a difficult read by any means. I can't wait to share it with my son when he gets old enough. There are some graphic descriptions (for a kid's book) about hunting/skinning animals, and some mature themes with kidnapping, slavery, etc., but it's very true to the Old West. Great book for boys ages 11 and up.
February 27, 2023
My husband read this aloud to our family over the course of several months.
It was a perfect story for our boys to listen to and even I enjoyed it.
Plenty of history and geography packed into fun adventures, with just enough heartache and danger to make it realistic.
Such a fun way to spend our Sunday evenings.
It was a perfect story for our boys to listen to and even I enjoyed it.
Plenty of history and geography packed into fun adventures, with just enough heartache and danger to make it realistic.
Such a fun way to spend our Sunday evenings.
December 15, 2011
Tucket’s travels
Tucket’s travels is a great five book volume with Mr.Tucket, Call me Francis Tucket, Tucket’s Ride, Tucket’s Gold, and Tucket’s Home by Gary Paulson . Francis Tucket is a resilient 14 year old boy moving west with his family riding a wagon train. On Francis’s birthday his father got him a beautiful new rifle, although it was the beginning of the end for Francis, that day he was captured by Indians. Mr. Grimes is the wise, one armed mountain man that rescues Francis and teaches him how to survive the Wild West. Mr. Grimes kills Braid the deceptive Indian war leader and then walks away. Lottie and Billy are two children who Francis rescued from starvation, abandoned in the middle of nowhere after their father died from water disease, they became Francis’s family.
The events in the books have all been taken in one way or another from real life experiences. After scraping a meager existence from the wilderness, Francis always encounters a problem in which he needs to use his wit and resourcefulness to escape or regain what was taken from him. The fast pace adventuring and slow traveling make an unpredictable read. Gary Paulson’s writing is one of my favorite author styles. Gary likes a lot of the same things that I like to do, he is an outdoor adventurer like me, he fishes, hunts, and camps. So when he writes he thinks of stories that interest him and when you find an author that has your same interests then you might have a favorite author. I like survival, independence, struggles, and adventures in my books. Tucket’s travel’s has all of this in one volume and they flow together superbly.
The thing that sticks with me from the books is the relentless push to get back home. Francis spends years looking for his family and had many sidetracks along the way. Gary shows his readers the real hardships of the west and the troubles that Francis needs to overcome. You should take the determination out of the book and use it in your own life and hardships. After finishing the book I envied Francis for living in his time and doing the things he learned. I would have liked to live through a time where law was nothing and someone had to fend for himself in the great wide world.
Tucket’s travels is a great five book volume with Mr.Tucket, Call me Francis Tucket, Tucket’s Ride, Tucket’s Gold, and Tucket’s Home by Gary Paulson . Francis Tucket is a resilient 14 year old boy moving west with his family riding a wagon train. On Francis’s birthday his father got him a beautiful new rifle, although it was the beginning of the end for Francis, that day he was captured by Indians. Mr. Grimes is the wise, one armed mountain man that rescues Francis and teaches him how to survive the Wild West. Mr. Grimes kills Braid the deceptive Indian war leader and then walks away. Lottie and Billy are two children who Francis rescued from starvation, abandoned in the middle of nowhere after their father died from water disease, they became Francis’s family.
The events in the books have all been taken in one way or another from real life experiences. After scraping a meager existence from the wilderness, Francis always encounters a problem in which he needs to use his wit and resourcefulness to escape or regain what was taken from him. The fast pace adventuring and slow traveling make an unpredictable read. Gary Paulson’s writing is one of my favorite author styles. Gary likes a lot of the same things that I like to do, he is an outdoor adventurer like me, he fishes, hunts, and camps. So when he writes he thinks of stories that interest him and when you find an author that has your same interests then you might have a favorite author. I like survival, independence, struggles, and adventures in my books. Tucket’s travel’s has all of this in one volume and they flow together superbly.
The thing that sticks with me from the books is the relentless push to get back home. Francis spends years looking for his family and had many sidetracks along the way. Gary shows his readers the real hardships of the west and the troubles that Francis needs to overcome. You should take the determination out of the book and use it in your own life and hardships. After finishing the book I envied Francis for living in his time and doing the things he learned. I would have liked to live through a time where law was nothing and someone had to fend for himself in the great wide world.
Read
December 17, 2015Tuckets Travels is a book I have read before. I decided to read it again because I enjoyed it so much the first time that I read it. It is a very good book that gives an amazing view of what life looked like in the West just before westward expansion. It shows how two different people a man and a young boy are able to come together and help each other. Gary Paulsen did a really good job of showing detail on the characters and the land I feel like I could see every scene that he had described. I really enjoy Paulsen as an author and I plan on reading the rest of this series. I especially like this book because it is like a roller coaster of emotion for young Francis Tucket. It was pure torture for him when he was captured by the Native Americans but he was then saved by Jason Grimes who I envision as the star standard for any mountain man who ever lived. Anyone interested in Westward expansion should give this book a look.
February 19, 2015
I own this book, and I must have read it through four or five times. The only other series I've read quite that much is Harry Potter. I first read this when I was perhaps ten, and the last time I read it I think I was 15, maybe 16. This series/book has had a huge impact on me. When I was younger I would play with Loving Family dolls, pretending that they were having similar adventures to Francis Tucket's. Now that I'm older I appreciate the characters and story more. I think that Francis may be one of my favorite fictional characters. I highly recommend this book/series, to boys or to girls. I'd say a mature nine-year-old could read this. A mature one because there is some disturbing, gory content (bloodthirsty, almost rabid seeming, rogue soldiers) later in the book.
December 10, 2017
This book is actually a whole 5-book series bound in one volume and tells the complete story of Francis Tucket's adventures in the old west, starting with being kidnapped by Pawnee after straying too far from his family's wagon train. Over the next two years Francis meets a number of different people, some good and some very bad, as he suffers through many dangers and hardships as he works to find his way West and hopefully reunite with his family.
I bought this for my nephew, as he is a generally a reluctant reader, but does enjoy the adventure and survival stories found in many of Paulsen's books. I have to say, from the summaries I thought it sounded like a great story for a kid, but I was surprised at just how much I enjoyed it. I was a bit concerned about how Native Americans would be portrayed, since these books were written before there was much concern for cultural awareness or sensitivity, but I was pleasantly surprised there, too.
While I can't judge how accurate or authentic the portrayals were, I was pleased to see Paulsen did not fall back on stereotypes and the typical tropes. Different tribes were identified by name and were shown to have their own cultures and languages, and they were not portrayed as savages, but merely as people trying to survive and protect what was theirs, with some individuals being kind and friendly, while others were hostile and most were neutral. Paulsen also provides notes at the end to give more historical context and correct misperceptions perpetuated by the TV and film industries.
The pace moved along pretty quickly and while it has a happy ending for Francis, there are many hardships and sad circumstances portrayed, as well as some significant violence, including various deaths. An attempted rape is alluded to, but the language used is vague and ambigous, so would go over the head of many young readers. The violence is realistic to the time period, but is not described graphically. Hunting animals for food is also described, as one would expect considering the story and time period.
I would highly recommend this to young readers who are interested in adventure and survival stories, and it is probably one of the few middle-grade Westerns still around; actually the only one I can think of, which make it unique.
I bought this for my nephew, as he is a generally a reluctant reader, but does enjoy the adventure and survival stories found in many of Paulsen's books. I have to say, from the summaries I thought it sounded like a great story for a kid, but I was surprised at just how much I enjoyed it. I was a bit concerned about how Native Americans would be portrayed, since these books were written before there was much concern for cultural awareness or sensitivity, but I was pleasantly surprised there, too.
While I can't judge how accurate or authentic the portrayals were, I was pleased to see Paulsen did not fall back on stereotypes and the typical tropes. Different tribes were identified by name and were shown to have their own cultures and languages, and they were not portrayed as savages, but merely as people trying to survive and protect what was theirs, with some individuals being kind and friendly, while others were hostile and most were neutral. Paulsen also provides notes at the end to give more historical context and correct misperceptions perpetuated by the TV and film industries.
The pace moved along pretty quickly and while it has a happy ending for Francis, there are many hardships and sad circumstances portrayed, as well as some significant violence, including various deaths. An attempted rape is alluded to, but the language used is vague and ambigous, so would go over the head of many young readers. The violence is realistic to the time period, but is not described graphically. Hunting animals for food is also described, as one would expect considering the story and time period.
I would highly recommend this to young readers who are interested in adventure and survival stories, and it is probably one of the few middle-grade Westerns still around; actually the only one I can think of, which make it unique.
October 15, 2018
It is set in an interesting time for the United States of America. The idea of Manifest Destiny has entered the hearts of Americans, many wagon trains have set out to California so they can get gold. There are Native Americans, mountain men and all of the frontier wildlife on the trail. It's a pre-cowboy frontier. Harsh and unforgiving. The Mexican-American war is going on during the book which impacts the events. It has a good conclusion and exposition that just wouldn't work in other historical settings.
It’s a good book with plenty of thrilling action. All of the characters are unique while still fitting within the time period. Most of the characters are likeable or at least understandable. There are a few parts in the book where it gets a bit boring but they aren't common. Part of the time it's the classic Paulsen survival fiction and other times it's an action man vs world vs man book. It has a good ending about family and home. It is a child or youth book but it is still pretty gritty. Gary Paulsen does a good job on it.
It’s a good book with plenty of thrilling action. All of the characters are unique while still fitting within the time period. Most of the characters are likeable or at least understandable. There are a few parts in the book where it gets a bit boring but they aren't common. Part of the time it's the classic Paulsen survival fiction and other times it's an action man vs world vs man book. It has a good ending about family and home. It is a child or youth book but it is still pretty gritty. Gary Paulsen does a good job on it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 12, 2016
Gabe Wiggins
10/07/16
Humanities
Per:2
Tucket’s Travels by Gary Paulsen is an enhancing story about a boy who is captured by Pawnee indians while heading west on the Oregon Trail.
Francis Tucket is a fourteen-year-old boy who has left Missouri with his family and headed west on the Oregon trail for a better life. While on the trail he had his 14th birthday, and as a gift his father gave him a gun. While Francis is shooting, the wagon train leaves him, and he is left alone in the middle of the prairie where a gang of Pawnee indians capture him and hold him as a prisoner. A few days later a one-armed mountain man, named Mr. Grimes, comes to the village to trade; there he helps Francis escape. Francis hops on a pony and rides away. The next morning, Francis awakes to Mr. Grimes cooking him breakfast; Grimes decides to help Francis survive. The next few months Grimes shows Francis how to live by the harsh code of the wild.
In the next couple of years searching for his family, Francis rescues two children, Lottie, and Billy. Together they encounter bandits, wild indians, soldiers, storms, and find an an ancient treasure. With all the excitement will Francis ever be able to find his family?
This is probably one of my all time favorite books because of how realistic the story was. Also Gary Paulsen does an amazing job of making me create how I want to see the story only making it that much better. I will now continue to look out for books written by him, because you learn about realistic situations with an enhancing story.
I highly recommend this book to others. I believe that we all should have good literature in our lives and this would be a key piece of it.
10/07/16
Humanities
Per:2
Tucket’s Travels by Gary Paulsen is an enhancing story about a boy who is captured by Pawnee indians while heading west on the Oregon Trail.
Francis Tucket is a fourteen-year-old boy who has left Missouri with his family and headed west on the Oregon trail for a better life. While on the trail he had his 14th birthday, and as a gift his father gave him a gun. While Francis is shooting, the wagon train leaves him, and he is left alone in the middle of the prairie where a gang of Pawnee indians capture him and hold him as a prisoner. A few days later a one-armed mountain man, named Mr. Grimes, comes to the village to trade; there he helps Francis escape. Francis hops on a pony and rides away. The next morning, Francis awakes to Mr. Grimes cooking him breakfast; Grimes decides to help Francis survive. The next few months Grimes shows Francis how to live by the harsh code of the wild.
In the next couple of years searching for his family, Francis rescues two children, Lottie, and Billy. Together they encounter bandits, wild indians, soldiers, storms, and find an an ancient treasure. With all the excitement will Francis ever be able to find his family?
This is probably one of my all time favorite books because of how realistic the story was. Also Gary Paulsen does an amazing job of making me create how I want to see the story only making it that much better. I will now continue to look out for books written by him, because you learn about realistic situations with an enhancing story.
I highly recommend this book to others. I believe that we all should have good literature in our lives and this would be a key piece of it.
May 8, 2022
A great YA read
This series is about Tucket, a boy who was taken by Natives as his family continued to Oregon.
For the next couple of years he collides with fascinating Native Americans, Mountain Men, and unsavory characters. Teaming up with 2 orphans, they survive as best as they can while they meander for safetys sake while seeking the best way to Oregon. These stories read quickly, and were hard to out down. If you like clean historical fiction, you will like Tuckets TraveLs.
This series is about Tucket, a boy who was taken by Natives as his family continued to Oregon.
For the next couple of years he collides with fascinating Native Americans, Mountain Men, and unsavory characters. Teaming up with 2 orphans, they survive as best as they can while they meander for safetys sake while seeking the best way to Oregon. These stories read quickly, and were hard to out down. If you like clean historical fiction, you will like Tuckets TraveLs.
February 18, 2019
Excellent read!
Although the book is described as a book for young readers, I would have to disagree. But in a positive way. The hardships endured by these three young people were not any different then would've been had by an adult. Very similar as to how William Johnstone writes in regards to the adventures and horrors that most people went through. All in all, a most excellent read!
Although the book is described as a book for young readers, I would have to disagree. But in a positive way. The hardships endured by these three young people were not any different then would've been had by an adult. Very similar as to how William Johnstone writes in regards to the adventures and horrors that most people went through. All in all, a most excellent read!
October 10, 2021
It was a little bitter sweet to finally finish this book after so many years. I have fond memories of this book and its been with me for years. Unfortunately I only really liked the first one. The rest of the series were kind of forgettable. And the final book felt rushed and like the author was done with writing this. I'm glad I got to finish an old friend. And I'll always love the first book of this series (the rest I'll probably forget).
November 23, 2020
This book covers just about everything that could've ever happened to anybody during the western expansion. If your looking for a fiction yet informative book for your gradeschooler and this is it.
A little bit of violence, but, as the author points out, those were part of the harsh realities of the time. Overall, the story was entertaining and action packed. A terrific boys book.
A little bit of violence, but, as the author points out, those were part of the harsh realities of the time. Overall, the story was entertaining and action packed. A terrific boys book.
December 31, 2017
G and I decided this gets a 4.5 stars.
His comment: "At first I didn't like it but then it got better." (He got pretty into it, as we went along.)
And I love the relationship between Francis Tucket and Jason Grimes. Of course.
His comment: "At first I didn't like it but then it got better." (He got pretty into it, as we went along.)
And I love the relationship between Francis Tucket and Jason Grimes. Of course.
Read
July 19, 2019The relationship between Francis and Grimes is well drawn. The story touches on many different perils and hardships faced back then. As a result, Francis often witnesses some tragically violent scenes not overtly graphic, but certainly not suited for everyone.
February 16, 2024
Nostalgia
Oh, the nostalgia. Read this series in grade school. It got me reading. Each book is a good story that can be read alone. A good introduction to hardship. It's one of my go to rereads.
Oh, the nostalgia. Read this series in grade school. It got me reading. Each book is a good story that can be read alone. A good introduction to hardship. It's one of my go to rereads.
May 11, 2019
Great! FAst paced, always interesting.
November 16, 2019
Francis was a brave boy. I enjoyed following him through his travels. It was a tough journey and i'm glad he found his way home.
April 5, 2022
Wow, wish Gary Paulsen would have written some more westerns. Very Louis L'amour
April 21, 2022
Excellent historical fiction, integrating events from several hundred years of the Old West for young readers.
October 10, 2022
Benny and I have been reading this and have absolutely loved the adventures. Great bed-time book! This was a super gift from his Granny!
September 19, 2023
Good book series for young readers. It's less daunting reading the five individual books though.
September 5, 2025
The first book that ever made me cry. This is the book that made me realize as a young fella that reading was a truly special medium and it can do so much for you.
September 23, 2025
I couldn't put it down. If you like adventures about the West, must read.
November 7, 2019
This is by far my favorite book for this age level. It is a gripping story of survival and determination along with loyalties that are surprising.
February 16, 2017
Just plain great writing.
This one will sweep you magically away to the pre-Old West. Classic Paulsen, whose writing skills can effectiively carry you anywhere.
This one will sweep you magically away to the pre-Old West. Classic Paulsen, whose writing skills can effectiively carry you anywhere.
February 12, 2019
I had never heard of this series until I picked up a used copy. The kids loved it. A bit of a variation on a typical theme, but Paulsen pulled it off.
March 16, 2009
This is the first book in a long time that Noble has kept coming back to. He had fallen into a "not reading" rut that I had to patiently wait out. He would read if I made him, but if he picked something up on his own he would only read for 20 minutes and be done for several days.
I hear Liam ask as soon as Noble finishes a chapter "what happened next!?" and I enjoy hearing them talking about what they would do if they were kidnapped by indians.
Grateful to have my reader back!
I hear Liam ask as soon as Noble finishes a chapter "what happened next!?" and I enjoy hearing them talking about what they would do if they were kidnapped by indians.
Grateful to have my reader back!
September 4, 2010
A cowboy story geared for children! Fourteen year old Tucket follows his instincts and remains good and kind as he learns to survive after he is kidnapped on the Oregon Trail by Indians. He has a lot of adventures as he struggles to find his way home, and continues as a positive example of good values. I enjoyed the quiet pace of this interesting book, and the reassuring feeling of a guaranteed happy ending.
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