The Brave Cowboy

Book excerpt: The Brave Cowboy was originally published in 1959 (Harcourt Brace & Co.) and sold over 230,000 copies in four languages. Although the book has been out of print for over 15 years, a faithful following of the work is stillevident as fans continue to post glowing reviews on Amazon.com. New fans of the work are sure to emerge as well because of the irresistible story Joan offers of one boy's special day of imaginative adventure. This adorable gift book for children features Joan's black and red line drawings on cream-colored stock. The red illustrations represent the brave cowboy's imaginary world of bandits, rattlesnakes, stagecoaches, and fair maidens. Joan's inspiration for the main character came from her son when he was about three years old.