Ghost Medicine

This book was like a slow boil. At first, I felt myself contemplating whether or not I would have to put it back on my shelf, but suddenly I found myself invested in the characters and truly engaged in their adventures. Over time, I found myself hanging on every word, desperately turning the pages to see how it would all end. Although it is different from some of Andrew Smith’s previous work, I once again found myself surrounded by tremendously written characters and a dramatic plot that left me reeling.

“Ghost Medicine” tells the story of Troy Stotts, a young man who recently lost his mother and has since found solace in his horse, Reno, and the group of friends that he has made on the Benavidez Horse Ranch. Troy, who has a somewhat strained--but workable--relationship with his father, is navigating the waters of what it means to become a man. Troy has found a love of horses and finds himself comforted by his work as a ranch hand to ease his mind away from the memories of those that he has lost. Although he is young, Troy is your stereotypical cowboy from his hat down to his boots...well, his tennis shoes (there’s just something about cowboy boots that he can’t seem to manage).

Troy spends the summer hanging out with Tommy Buller, the son of the Benavidez Ranch foreman with an adventurous spirit and coyote smile; Gabe Benavidez, the son of Arturo Benavidez who grew up in the shadow of his sister on the family ranch; and Luz Benavidez, the apple of her father’s eye, a brilliant rider, and Troy’s love interest. This tight-knit clique makes the most of their summer by balancing all the work--and all of the fun--that comes from being on the ranch. When their friendship is tested and they are pushed past what they even thought possible, this group must figure out how to navigate the darker side of life.

As Troy and his friends face the trials and tribulations of snake bites, wildfires, cougar attacks, bullying, and death, they realize that friendship has the power to bring you through even the darkest of times. Balancing life isn’t always easy, especially when you are falling in love with your best friend’s sister, the local bully happens to be the son of the sheriff, and the town’s resident recluse has taken a shine to you and offered you a herd of wild horses, but for Troy Stotts it is exactly what he needed.

There were times when I found myself wishing this book had a little more action (at least compared to some of Andrew Smith’s other work), but as I finished reading, I was thankful that Smith paced the action the way that he did. I think that Smith did a brilliant job letting the suspense and action build in a subtle way and giving the reader time to truly fall in love with each of the characters before having to see them endure hardships.

I appreciated the realness of the characters that Smith wrote in this book. Each one of these characters came with their own history, their own story, and it was interesting to see how each of them interacted with one another and the natural bonds of friendship and love that developed over time.

If you are looking for a book that features horses, young love, the spirit of adventure, and tragic loss, then you have got to give this a try. This book had me chuckling to myself, sobbing over the pages, and left me with a strange inclination to get a horse.

5 out of 5 stars.