Rodeo Red and her hound dog Rusty are happier than two buttons on a new shirt... until Side Swiping Slim shows up. This is a problem-- Red is sure that anyone who hollers that much will be hauled to the edge of town and told to skedaddle, but her parents seem smitten. When that scallywag sets his eye on Rusty, Rodeo Red had better figure out a way to save her best friend in all the world. Can she make a bargain with a varmint and resolve this dilemma? This first person fiction narrative is told using dialect, figurative language; metaphor, simile and humor. Detailed illustrations support characters, setting and plot. Curriculum Connections: Fiction, first person narrative, Story elements: characterization, plot; problem/solution, setting, figurative language; metaphor, simile, dialect, vocabulary development; compound words, themes; siblings/family, new baby, rodeo