Bucky McGuire: The Adventures of a Prairie Boy

by Bryan Foy

When Bucky McGuire travels by wagon train to his new home, he learns life lessons about family, love, faith, and hope.

Eleven-year-old Bucky McGuire climbs aboard his family’s covered wagon and heads west in 1877. Wrapped in buffalo robes, young Bucky watches the new world unfurl before him and dreams of the possibilities of frontier life in post–Civil War Illinois.

Bucky soon learns he will need every ounce of his considerable grit and good-heartedness to assist the McGuire clan in taming their new surroundings. There are crops to protect from a biblical plague of locusts, a cowboy posse to join when a fierce blizzard threatens a herd of cattle, and wayward children to rescue from an abandoned mine shaft. To say nothing of the risks posed by the smile of a pretty girl at the church social . . .

As his adventures unfold, Bucky will discover that anything is possible with the help of a strong horse, a loyal dog, and the love of a good family.

262 pages, Paperback

Published August 24, 2021

About the author

Dr. Bryan Foy grew up loving books and the written word. As a ten-year-old, he devoured The Adventures of Tom Sawyer in a single night. Nearly sixty years later, Dr. Foy decided to finally publish Bucky McGuire, a story which is the product of years making up tales of Bucky’s adventures for his six children at bedtime, and later for his grandchildren.

Dr. Foy and his family owned a farm on Longhollow Road in Galena, which was the source of inspiration for the McGuire family farm. By trade, Dr. Foy is a practicing heart surgeon in the Chicago area. By night, he enjoys reading, particularly to his grandchildren or making up stories about family, faith, love, hope, and forgiveness.

Bucky McGuire: The Adventures of a Prairie Boy is Dr. Foy's first book.

Reviews

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a well written book that holds your attention from the first page until the last. The author brings the story to life with his words and you feel like you are there. It has just the right amount of action and adventure to keep you turning the pages. This book was a wonderful read and I enjoyed every minute spent with it. I received a complimentary copy from Girl Friday Productions, Longhollow Books via NetGalley and was not required to write a review. All opinions expressed are my own.

[Christian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though this undoubtedly reads like a children's book, it nonetheless feels written for a particular audience, an older generation that grew up on Spaghetti Westerns and reading Zorro novels under the covers at night. There are no shootouts or sunset anticipations, though the time period and "it was a simpler time" tone betrays this. For what it is, though, it's a wonderful little book, Foy's writing feeling appropriately like the patient and doting storytelling of a kindly grandfather. Bucky's adventures do exactly as advertised in the synopsis: they show what can be overcome with the support of a strong, loving family. It's wholesome to its core.

It isn't without flaws, of course, and few first novels ever are. More could have been done in the editing room, and I did notice a few run-on sentences, as well as a few that felt vaguely awkward when read aloud. The writing also felt slightly inconsistent, at times feeling like it was written for small children, and at others a noticeable older audience. There was also one random and bloody scene which, while giving Cap'n Jack a moment in the spotlight, was nonetheless comparatively gruesome. It felt organic to the story and setting, but felt less sanitized than the rest of the work.

Overall, though, I enjoyed this quite a bit. I respect Dr. Foy for puzzling out a good-natured and heartfelt story about love and perseverance, and I respect the purity of the story itself. The biggest shame is that it ended right before Rebecca's story could begin.

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The description of Bucky McGuire and its setting of post-civil war Illinois near Galena caught my attention right away. As an Illinois girl interested in history, I had high hopes for this book. While the story of Bucky was interesting and the interchange between the now adult Bucky and his great-grandchildren was interesting, I did not enjoy it as much as I hoped.

While geared for upper-elementary children, the author uses numerous words and phrases unfamiliar to many children. While well-written and filled with amazing vocabulary, Bucky McGuire would be best as a read-aloud where unfamiliar terms could be explained. I did find the story dragged a bit but reading it aloud so that children could "hear" it told in the same way Bucky's grandchildren did would be a wise choice. As parent or teacher may find it helpful to create research projects around some of the events included in the book which would provide learning opportunities in history and science topics.

Recommended for reading aloud or as a unit study. Children who are interested in history and are avid readers will enjoy.

[Melissaf7 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Rich with history, told through a personal lens, it kept me and my nephews (who we read it to) engaged from start to finish. Another reader suggested pairing it with some research/history projects for kids and I loved that idea!