July, 2000 issue of Cowboys & Indians:

"Why would a young man from Guthrie, Oklahoma attempt a solo, cross-country, 1500 mile horseback ride all the way to Hollywood? Because it's a cowboy thing to doand that's exactly what Jerry Van Meter did in 1946. The ride came about because of a bet made between Western singer Jimmy Wakely and Van Meters' grandfather (who also happened to be Charlie Goodnight's cousin). With a few meager supplies, a Colt. 45, a borrowed Osage pony, and a lot of pluck, Van Meter undertook his dangerous journey.

Now in his mid-70's, Van Meter told his story to Patti Dickinson, also an Oklahoma native. She turned it into a riveting tale that keeps the reader moving along, mile after difficult mile.

During his 50-day odyssey, Van Meter faces attempted robbery by Mexican bandits, a stampede of mustangs, a near fatal crossing of the Mojave Desert, and a host of other adventures. Dickinson's graceful and vivid writing keeps the reader right at Van Meter's side. It's very hard to remember that the adventrue is fact and not fiction.

This compelling tale about cowboy grit and heroism rewards the reader page after page. Hollywood the Hard Way shows that fact can be stranger than fiction. Does he make it? See for yourself. Saddle up and get ready for one of the most memorable rides of your life!" Richard W. Slatta

School Library Journal
February 2000

This authentic oral history, told to the author and skillfully fictionalized, will appeal to anyone who can enjoy a great adventure story. In 1945, with dreams of becoming a pilot shattered by a back injury, 20-year old Jerry Van Meter returned to his grandfather's Oklahoma ranch to work as a cowboy.....A bet was made [that Jerry could ride from the Bar R to Hollywood in 50 days or less]....Fortunately, he had been well-schooled in survival and horsemanship skills.... With building suspense, in vivid vignettes, Dickinson tells of the ride across deserts, over mountains, and through many perils and twists of fate. History lessons are embedded in this well-told tale: famous folk and events are woven into Jerry's family lore, and his journey takes him through a postwar America convincingly drawn by the author. Christine C. Menefee, Fairfax Country Public Library, VA

Cascade Horseman, December, 1999
~ Pick of the West ~

"Patti Dickinson writes with an exceptional ability to capture the physical, emotional, and spiritual essence of a young man's struggle to overcome his secret feelings of inadequacy in a family known for their strong character. He accomplishes this and more on his journey to Hollywood. The book is an inspiration for all, proving that decent honorable people can succeed in life while overcoming both violent criminals and natural hardships, yet remain true to a code of honor with repsect for all people and animals.
I'd recommend this book for all ages who would love an exciting, clean, true-life adventure story involving a cowboy, a horse, and an inspirational journey across the western states." Lorinda Gamble

Oklahoma Family Magazine
November 1999

"Jules Verne gave Phineas Fogg 80 days to go around the world. Not so, Oklahoma rancher Rolla Goodnight and his wagering companion, the singing cowboy-actor Jimmy Wakely.......In a bet, which terms are still unknown, JerryVan Meter was challenged to ride from Guthrie, Oklahoma to Hollywood, California, a distance of some 1500 miles, in 50 days......

.....Dickinson captures this unique adventure in simple focused prose. More than heroic, Van Meter was honorable in a time that would soon grow less respectful of such things. As a slice of Oklahoma history, it fascinates and humbles. This story of an intrepid cowboy and his amazing horse is worthy of being more than a sidebar in Oklahoma's past."Terry Collins

The Western Horse
January/February 2000

"Saddle up with Jerry Van Meter as he rides from Oklahoma to Hollywood on the back of his Osage Indian mare. This true tale takes place in 1945 when Jerrys grandfather, Oklahoma cattle rancher Rolla Goodnight, makes a bet with his friend, Hollywood singing cowboy actor Jimmy Wakely. Wakely says post-war America is left with "a cowboy worth his salt who could sit in a saddle for the length of a cattle drive." Goodnight says Wakelys dead wrong. But Goodnight is past his prime, so to prove his point and to honor tradition, he bets that his cowboy grandson has what it takes to ride the length of a cattle drive.

Six months later, Jerry and his gutsy mare Fan find themselves on a 1,500 mile trek with only 50 daysthe approximate distance and time of Rollas former drivesto get to Hollywood. Their quest takes them through windswept plains, over rugged mountains and through scorching deserts. They encounter deadly bandits, wild mustangs, roaring rivers, rattlesnakes, rockslides and a mountain lion. Dickinson stretches the tension so tight in these danger-filled scenes that I had to peek ahead just to make sure Jerry and Fan were going to be all right. Thanks to the book, this journey need only be take the easy wayfrom the comfort of your safe, cozy chair." Susan Union The Western Horse magazine

Idaho Librarian
December, 1999

"Patti Dickinson has written a fun book about a cowboy, Jerry Van Meter, who rode a horse from Guthrie, Oklahoma to Hollywood, California... The story is told in the third person so the reader gets a broad perspective as the action unfolds. Dickinsons extensive research and interviews with Van Meter support a masterful telling of the tale. The reader can visualize the country and the people Van Meter encounters and sense the atmosphere of each place and situation, from sandstorms and burning deserts to the children who want to pet his horse.

This reviewer is reminded of John Steinbeckss Travels with Charley as Van Meter tells the stories of the places he sees, the people he meets, and the discoveries he makes about himself and others along the way. He remembers gratefully the rancher in Clovis, New Mexico, who allowed Fan to stay in his barn during a bad storm even though Fan had distemper. He records the tension in the Quemado (New Mexico) country store, when strangers and locals interacted without making so much as eye contact. He tells of riding and walking when Fan is too sick or too sore to be ridden. He recounts detours like the stroll through the Mojave Desert instead of following the highway because the officious local agricultural inspector wont let weary Fan into California. It is a journey of horse and rider, man and world, with the weight of his grandfathers bet and the honor of the modern cowboy riding on young Jerrys shoulders.

It is not hard to she why Hollywood the Hard Way has been nominated for awards such as the Oklahoma Book Award, the Spur Award, and the Sequoyah Book Award. This book will be of interest to anyone who enjoys cowboy or adventure stories. It is suitable for adults or young adults." Bob Hook, Reference Librarian, University of Idaho Library

Nov/Dec, Bloomsbury Review
"Editors' Favorite Books of 1999"

"Hollywood the Hard Way by Patti Dickinson, is a memoir of riding from Oklahoma to California in 50 days with one horse, one cowboy in the summer of 1946, when there were few fences or highways, and still wild places, some of which survive today. Old photographs and a map of the route enhance writing that is thrifty and sure-footed." Glenda Burnside, Southern Correspondent,
Bloomsbury Review

"A young cowboy accepts a bet to ride from Oklahoma to Hollywood. He has to do it in 50 days, taking only what he can carry on his horse. He crosses raging rivers, endures blistering sandstorms and survives gunfights with murderous horse thieves. No, it's not the latest Larry McMurtry novel. It's a true story that Dickinson, an Oklahoma native, first heard from a bartender in Montana. She subsequently tracked down Jerry Van Meter, the now aging cowboy who made the amazing journey back in 1946; a year later, after extensive research and interviews with Van Meter, she wrote this charming narrative. The bet was between Jimmy Wakely, a Hollywood singing cowboy, and Van Meter's grandfather, a hardened old Oklahoma rancher. Disagreeing about whether cowboys were doomed to extinction, they chose young Van Meter to settle the matter. After a series of ordeals, including a harrowing trek across the Mojave Desert, Van Meter reached California only to find a landscape transformed by a surging post-WWII economy and filled with highways, department stores and sprawling subdivisions. Van Meter realized that he may have won the bet but lost the point: Billy the Kid was never rousted from a nap by the California Highway Patrol; Wild Bill Cody never rested his horse in the end zone of the Rose Bowl. Dickinson's compelling adventure story doubles as a wistful eulogy for a vanished way of life." Publishers Weekly, August 16, 1999

 
"In 1945, Jerry Van Meter was living on a ranch in Oklahoma, recovering from an injury that put him out of the navy. His grandfather, an old cattleman, made a bet with Jimmy Wakely, then a singing cowboy in the movies, that Jerry could ride the 1500 miles to Hollywood in 50 days, taking only what he could carry on his horse. Jerry set out on the arduous journey with a trusted Osage Indian pony, and a .45 once carried by an old family friend. In 1945 you still could ride across the country, mostly,and Jerry has the time of his life--floods river crossings, Indians, thieves, California border police, and crossing the Mojave Desert on foot add up to a great passage to a self-reliant adulthood. Jerry's memories are colored by the knowledge that the freewheeling cattle-based life he loves was about to change forever, and freelancer Dickinson's rendering of an old man's memories of the cowboy mystique is evocative. An engaging reminiscence primarily of interest to collections focusing on the Southwest, but also appropriate for Young Adult." Library Journal, August 1999; Edwin B. Burgess, U.S. Army Combined Arms Research Lib. Ft. Leavenworth, KS