Thoroughly enjoyed this story....I suppose it is the tried and true 'good guy gets bad deal, leaves town, returns to fight the real bad guys' story, but it has some very colorful characters and the details of life in a turn of the century Indiana town are just fun to absorb. I actually laughed out loud occasionally and was also horrified at the treatment of a dog in one chapter, not to mention intrigued with the matter-of-fact racism that existed in the day. Tarkington is a little verbose sometimes in rambling sentences, but usually it was worth it if i could follow. Nothing too deep, but fun. ( )