Toughest Ranger, The (Western Short Stories Collection)

A perfect role for a young Robert Redford, saddle tramp Petey McGuire doesn’t have much to live for. The trail in front of him stretches out long and hot, and there’s no end in sight. He’s been beaten down, beaten up, and kicked around so long, he’d run away from his own shadow if he could. But there’s one fight he can’t run from—the fight against hunger.

Petey needs a job quick, before he drops dead in the dust. But the only way to get one is to act cool and talk tough—in other words, become the exact opposite of Petey McGuire. Putting on a performance worthy of a Shakespearean actor, he succeeds all too well—landing in the saddle with the Arizona Rangers.

Talking tough is one thing, but backing it up is another. Because Petey’s about to discover exactly what it takes—and how much he has to risk—to face the meanest outlaw, win the prettiest girl, and become The Toughest Ranger.

Born and raised in the twilight of the Old West—from Nebraska plain to the mountains of Montana—L. Ron Hubbard grew up in the company of real cowboys and rugged frontiersmen, even becoming a blood brother to a Blackfoot medicine man. His firsthand knowledge allowed him to instill a grit and authenticity into his stories that made him one of the leading writers of Westerns, publishing a total of 34 of them by the 1950s.

Also includes the Western adventures, Silent Pards, in which an old prospector takes on a couple of wicked enemies with the help of some surprising friends, and The Ranch That No One Would Buy, the story of a young stranger who’s about to pull off a killer of a deception.

“An exciting Western story filled with both action and adventure.” —Mommy’s Favorite Things