That's My Story: Two Tales

tells two exciting tales from the author's family history. The first- -is set in 1922 Texas. Sheriff Jim Groves leads a posse by automobile and horseback after the famous outlaw Frank Holloway, whose pistols have seven notches, one for every man he's killed. At the same time, Jim's father's grave is opened and his body snatched in an effort to prove the family's rights to Manhattan's notorious Edwards Estate. Narrating is Jim's 12-year-old nephew Bing, who will be tasked (in disguise) with saving the day. The second- -takes place in Beverly Hills, California in 1935. Jim is living in a stately Holmby Hills "cottage," providing security to the Raven brothers, rich Los Angeles developers and boosters of UCLA's football team. Jim's son Shorty, the Bruins' fullback, carries the team to a start that promises the Rose Bowl, until he's called out as a ringer. Getting to the bottom of things, Jim-Bing again accompanying him and narrating-traces the commotion to Oil King Cassidy himself, chief booster of the Bruins' archrivals, the USC Trojans. Classic noir mayhem ensues. offers a lively picture of early 20th-century American life, from the writer calls "a masterly communicator of time and place."