About the Book

Book: All Together West: A Ginnie West Adventure Authors: Monique Bucheger & G.L. Rasmussen Genre: Upper Middle Grade Release date: December 5, 2024

Families are complicated… and no one knows that better than 12 year-old Ginnie West. With her dad engaged to her best friend’s mom, this summer should be a dream come true. However, the return of Tillie’s birth father muddles the girls’ celebration. On the plus side, Ginnie’s dream of training on her beloved horse, Calliope, is finally happening. However, she soon discovers that her riding experience is not enough when Tillie, her best friend, and Toran, her twin brother, and their new horses outshine Calliope in performance. To complicate matters further, Ginnie finds herself in the midst of an escalating prank war with her mischievous Uncle Jake, drawing the entire family into the chaos. The West/Stratton/Taylor families must come together and heal, allowing her great-uncle’s cherished motto, “When you’re here, you’re family,” to hold true once more.

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About the Authors

Monique is a bestselling author, a certified Farland Fiction Coach, and an empowerment speaker, dedicated to championing the underdog, in both her writing and real-life adventures. Having a heart for families in crisis, Monique creates stories that capture the essence of real-life challenges and triumphs, with a touch of humor. Monique’s upper middle-grade series, ‘The Ginnie West Adventures,’ delves into sensitive and weighty themes such as parental loss, abandonment, and overcoming abuse. She delivers stories not only for tween readers, but for those young at heart. Drawing from her experiences nurturing a dozen of her own children and fostering over a hundred more, Monique’s experiences shape her books, creating novels in a number of genres, including a historical family saga, contemporary family dramas, a fun picture book, and a middle grade series weaving whimsy and heart into her tales.

A country boy by birth and by choice, Gary spent his youth working on the family farm, for local farmers and ranchers, on horseback or playing sports. Offered scholarships in Agriculture and Advertising Design, he opted for the bright lights and big city. Eight years in the advertising field convinced him that wasn’t where he wanted to be. Gary freelanced in design and illustration, converted his love of writing for advertising to a newspaper column about the country lifestyle. He has also worked as a ranch manager, cowboy, rancher, and horse trainer. An avid painter and author, Gary shares his talents through mentoring others, is a past president of the Western Art Guild and Idaho Writers League and is an active member of Western Writers of America. Gary and his wife, Margie are the parents of four children and ten grandchildren and have traveled extensively throughout Europe, Great Britain and the United States.

More from Monique

All Together West: A Ginnie West Adventure is an accumulation of many arcs, including getting to know some family members that Ginnie didn’t even know existed not very long ago. These blasts from the past make Ginnie and Tillie’s present very interesting. When Monique and G.L. wrote Book 5: Chase Your Dreams West: A Ginnie West Adventure, it turned into a very long book and was split almost in half–with some storylines going into Book 5 and others into Book 6. A new plotline was added to weave a more interesting tale that readers have really liked. In fact, while Ginnie and Tillie have puzzled along trying to solve some riddles, readers made some interesting guesses that have given the authors ideas to add to future novels. So put on your thinking caps and jump right in with your best guesses as the girls go on a treasure hunt. Who knows what they might find as they search for clues from the present to fill in gaps from the past? Their hunt might lead to an amazing adventure in the future.

Interview with the Author

Do you read books in this genre? If so, who do you like to read?

G: Patrick McManus, Larry McMurtry, Will James, Mark Twain, Tom McGuane, Rod Miller, Janet Evanovich

M: Katherine Paterson (Bridge to Terabithia), Laura Ingalls Wilder, Louisa May Alcott, Madeleine L’Engle, Jennifer Holme

If a reader were to ask you what author you are like, what would you answer?

G: Patrick McManus. He writes humor about the outdoors but he writes it from the inside looking out having grown up in Idaho not from the outside looking in like Zane Grey.

What helps you to write? Do you eat snacks, listen to music?

M: Visualizing a scene that interests or excites me. I seldom listen to music while I write–though some songs do help me get in the mood to write. I am partial to country music–the songs about God, country, and family–and I am also partial to songs about front porch swings. 🙂 I enjoy drinking all flavors of Dr. Pepper (especially coconut) and white cheddar Poppables.

If you could travel back in time, what time period would you go to?

M: I’ve always been partial to the late 1800’s–when the pioneers homesteading America sought out new frontiers. But I’d want to bring a large bottle of Tylenol.

What is your favorite book and why?

G: Lonesome Dove. It portrayed the times and lifestyle beautifully and the movie brought the characters to life. However, I can’t forgive the portrayal of Capt. Call’s Kiowa mare who was a gelding in the movie.

What is your favorite hymn and why?

G: Till We Meet Again. Sometimes hope is all we have.

What is one thing readers would be surprised to learn about you?

G: I’ve been characterized as a Renaissance Cowboy. Don’t hold your breath if you think I’ll be sauntering into town in tights and spurs anytime soon.

What inspired you to write this book?

M: Lots of things, but mostly I want kids (the young and the young at heart) to know that life is a pretty cool adventure, hard things happen to everybody, and it’s okay to keep going and enjoy your life rather than get stuck when things are hard.

Love is an infinite commodity and it’s meant to be shared. And if you lose someone special to you, they aren’t gone forever and they don’t want you mired in sadness. Life is meant to be enjoyed and it’s more fun with good friends.

Share with me a few of your favorite things.

M: Good friends, inspirational sayings, when a reader lets me know one of my stories impacts them in a positive or meaningful way, when my kids enjoy spending time together, looking at pictures of friends and family and recall good memories we have made together.

What is one question you would like readers to ask you? What would be your answer?

G: If there was anything about my life I could change, what would that be? I do have some regrets but the life lessons learned are incalculable and make for good fodder in my writing.