“Maybe what matters is not so much the path as who walks beside you.”― Stacey Lee, Under a Painted Sky
This debut novel by author Stacey Lee is a powerful story of love, friendship, and acceptance. Samantha is a gifted violinist living in Missouri with her father in 1849. All she wants is to return to New York where she can pursue her music. As a Chinese woman, pursuing music in New York is difficult but in Missouri it is near impossible. Her situation gets worse after a tragic fire leaves her with nothing and she commits a crime in self defense. With help from Annamae, a runaway slave she met at the scene of the crime, the two girls flee Missouri and head west to the frontier. It doesn’t take them long to realize they will never make it as women so they disguise themselves as boys and become “Sammy” and “Andy,” two boys headed west to join the gold rush. They keep to themselves as much as possible but when they cross paths with a trio of cowboys, they join forces and become friends–with the complication of hiding their true identities. As Sammy begins to fall for one of the cowboys, the complications increase as does the danger as the law continues to search for Samantha and hiding places are few and far between.
This is not your typical Western tale with two of the main characters being women of color. Stacey Lee brings this new and welcome dimension to the genre and the end result is a well crafted, engaging story told with a lot of heart and humor. If you love a good frontier story, Under a Painted Sky will not disappoint.
Content Advisory: Attempted sexual assault, violence, attempted murder, death