The always-literal Amelia Bedelia visits a dude ranch. She thinks a "broken" horse needs fixing, "driving" cows requires gas, and a "chuck wagon" must belong to someone named Chuck. In this installment, new readers unfamiliar with ranch expressions may identify more with Amelia Bedelia than with her patient hosts, but illustrations and smoothly inserted explanations help make sense of the plays on words.

Gr 1&11;3&12; Amelia Bedelia visits her uncle's dude ranch in this installment in the popular beginning-reader series. In typical fashion, she takes everything literally. She wonders who "broke" a horse named Cream Puff, "shoos" other horses, imagines an outlaw enjoying the "cooler" on a hot day, etc. The humor isn't over-the-top; often, it isn't even groan-worthy. The pictures don't add significant value to the text, but do help to illustrate some of Amelia's blunders. While this book would probably circulate with the child's fans, it is a forgettable tale.&12; Amy Commers, South St. Paul Public Library, MN