James is, to put it mildly, stunned. He couldn’t figure out why Kelly left, he had no idea he was a father and he realizes he’s always thought she was a good friend and even more to him. So why didn’t she tell him the truth? Kelly pretends she has everything under control. She plans to have them stay in town for the summer before she goes to school. James can get to know his son before they leave again. What she doesn’t tell him at first is that she doesn’t feel well and she only let him know about his son in case something is really wrong with her.

Can this relationship be saved? James is a good guy who takes to fatherhood a lot more readily than either adult expected. Will is a real toddler with poop in his pants, emergency ear infections and a short span of attention and James copes with it all. But Kelly holds back. She’s lived her life by a lot of rules and James is the one person for whom she’s willing to break those rules. Kelly decides that since she now has little Will to think about, that makes James dangerous to her.

While Kelly is likable, the reader spends a lot of time wondering just what her problem is. Kelly is a good mom but doesn’t do so well with adults. Why can’t she give in and let James step into his son’s life and hers? Why did she wait so long to tell him about Will? James is a worthwhile human being who more than shows he deserves a chance. What Kelly sees as problems don’t seem to be problems to the reader. Kelly’s past is revealed by the end of the book, long past time for the reader to gradually feel empathy for Kelly’s dilemma. Once the problem is revealed - well, yeah, Kelly has reasons for her hesitation to trust.

The reader can tell from the beginning that this family was meant to be together. How the two adults in The Littlest Wrangler work their way toward what is meant to be, without their own failings blocking the way, is heartwarming. You just wish it didn’t take them so long to clue in.

--Irene Williams