Ester Wier's first book for children, The Loner (1963), was a highly acclaimed Newbery Honor Book of 1964. Her fourteen subsequent books exhibit a surprising variation in quality directly linked to her choice of settings. Wier's best works have exceptionally strong regional backgrounds, while her poorer ones are usually placed in unspecified and undifferentiated locations. Wier is particularly noted for stories of western North America and the Everglades of Florida.

Except for three nature narratives, each of Wier's children's books is a highly consistent example of contemporary realism. The setting is fully described and often specific in location. Not only is there unity of plot and setting, but the paramount focus of the book is often either the place itself or an action inherent to that place. The chief character is a young male, ten to fifteen years old, who is without family or friends and has usually been left...