Clementine — Tova Dian Dean

Clementine is a young adult story sent in the late 1870s. Thirteen-year-old Clementine is trying to make do, living near a desolate mining town in a mountain range in Death Valley, California with chickens as her only neighbors. To protect her from the violent miners, her father has a shack built in a valley that is within walking distance to the infamous Panamint City, a place Clementine is forbidden to go near. The scorching days are lonely until she meets a Mexican family whose friendship shows her the wonders of this unusual place, family love and childhood adventures. The world begins to collapse for Clementine when her only friends must leave. When her father vanishes, Clementine will need her newly learned self-confidence if she plans to survive.