"Bandits! is terrific. Well told, well written, carefully edited, nicely printed, attractive cover, easy to read clear type face...Characters have depth. There are literary references and accurate California geography detail...and the ending is a bit of a surprise!” —Tod A. Anton, Educator (CA)

"... A gunslinging, action-filled adventure. Filled with danger and death threats, complex characters, and a plot that keeps you interested, lovers of the Wild, Wild West and thrill-seeking adventure will enjoy reading BANDITS!
—Kira in TeensReadToo.Com (August 2010)

"...everything about this book is wonderful. I could not put it down...." —Linda Miramontes Gray (CA)

"...I must say that young Hamlet seems to become a classic example of the 'Stockholm Syndrome,' in which prisoners come to sympathize with their captors... Marvelous story, well told...." —Harry Z. Ackerman, M.D.(NV)

"...I read parts of this to my seventh-graders...The story starts somewhat slowly for the typical YA, but this is not your typical YA story, and the response of both boys and girls throughout was rapt attention...The story reads aloud very, very well...." —Helen R. Seagraves, Middleschool Teacher (CA)

"Author (and my colleague) Joaquin Peralta once mentioned that he wanted to write a book about his ancestors, famous Californios and recipients of huge grants of California land from the King of Spain, but in Bandits! he manages to mention his great-great-great (?) grandfather, Antonio Peralta, only in passing. 'The story got away from me,' says Joaquin. But I say that it is effectively, touchingly done...." —Glenda Parker, High School English Teacher (CA)

"... The characters are so beautifully detailed that you remember them. Some of the badmen are not really bad people, which is true in real life. The setting is very nicely pictured. The 'suggestion' of Spanish language use is clever. I think that some teachers and librarians and (maybe) parents will object to the pretty graphic violence committed by the bandits. But I think young people are pretty well used to that sort of thing by watching TV and playing video games. So the only problem is getting them to read the book. They will enjoy it, as will grownups. I did...." —Carmen Flores, Parent Activist (CA)

"...Young Hamlet Kuhl is a surprise. He's bright but considerably naive and he is determined to become 'a person worth knowing'...Hamlet's confusion presents the young man with difficulties in differentiating good and evil, a dilemma for contemporary youth....The historical setting is spot-on accurate, even as to clothes and dates...." —Frank Limbaugh, Historian (TX)