The reader will find this book a pleasant and endearing change of pace because of it's mode of innocence and a mixture of sadness. Marc Bowman and Bobby Sousa and Jim Stern depart for the lake together expecting to find a day of self-reliance and fun. When the old Mohave man Mr. Malacka suggests traveling to the lake on horseback there becomes a sense of parental security and fulfillment that Mr. Malacka fulfills. The inclement weather is also a harbinger of how life's good times can suddenly turn bad. The group enjoys an idyllic day doing what young twelve-year-olds do on a fishing trip. The reader can feel the essence of the lake as it's described and will enjoy old Chato as he shares some of his experiences with the boys. The reader will also laugh with the boys  as Bobby's story of Flavio is told around a mealtime campfire. Those who have been to the tri-state area of Arizona, California and Nevada will readily agree that it is as scenic as when Jedediah Smith found it and the Mohaves in the 1800's. The Boundary Cone and the Colorado River prominently remain.