Where the Red Fern Grows - Rambling Readers

Hardcover, 212 pages

English language

Published Jan. 1, 1961 by Doubleday.

ISBN:: 978-0-385-02059-6
OCLC Number:: 1617533

(2 reviews)

More than anything else in life, Billy Colman wanted a dog. When at the age of ten he saw an ad for two coon-hound pups, he resolved to its their purchase price of $50. Two years later, having scrimped and saved, he attained his goal—the dogs were his, and he named them Old Dan and Little Ann.

Billy spent weeks training his dogs to hunt their ring-tailed quarry. Night after night the three of them romped through the dark hills and river bot-toms of the Cherokee country. Old Dan had the brawn, Little Anne had the brains, and their reputation as a remarkable hunting team spread gradually through the valley. When the big moment came, Billy and his dogs were ready for it. Upsetting the cham-pions, they won the coveted gold cup in the annual coon-hunt contest. But ex-citement and victory were short-lived. and tragedy awaited the pups. Wilson Rawls …

More than anything else in life, Billy Colman wanted a dog. When at the age of ten he saw an ad for two coon-hound pups, he resolved to its their purchase price of $50. Two years later, having scrimped and saved, he attained his goal—the dogs were his, and he named them Old Dan and Little Ann.

Billy spent weeks training his dogs to hunt their ring-tailed quarry. Night after night the three of them romped through the dark hills and river bot-toms of the Cherokee country. Old Dan had the brawn, Little Anne had the brains, and their reputation as a remarkable hunting team spread gradually through the valley. When the big moment came, Billy and his dogs were ready for it. Upsetting the cham-pions, they won the coveted gold cup in the annual coon-hunt contest. But ex-citement and victory were short-lived. and tragedy awaited the pups. Wilson Rawls has written a tender but convincing story that will warm the hearts of dog lovers of any age. --jacket

39 editions

crabbygirl reviewed Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls

Review of 'Where the Red Fern Grows' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

sob - what a sad, sad ending. i cried and cried.

always meant to read this book, and - being so well known - it was hard to escape the (also well known) plot point of the dogs dying.... even the children knew this before they heard the story (we own a book on tape called 'no more dead dogs' where the narrator rails against reading this book where not one, but two (!) dogs die)

the beginning of the tale was beautifully written - drawing the reader in with nostalgia and foreshadow. before long, i was immersed in the story, and forgot to steel myself for the tragedy.

my favorite part was this boy's determination to get those pups - the odd jobs, the saving of every single penny, never losing sight of his goal for a full 2 years. and then he walks for 2 days to get …

sob - what a sad, sad ending. i cried and cried.

always meant to read this book, and - being so well known - it was hard to escape the (also well known) plot point of the dogs dying.... even the children knew this before they heard the story (we own a book on tape called 'no more dead dogs' where the narrator rails against reading this book where not one, but two (!) dogs die)

the beginning of the tale was beautifully written - drawing the reader in with nostalgia and foreshadow. before long, i was immersed in the story, and forgot to steel myself for the tragedy.

my favorite part was this boy's determination to get those pups - the odd jobs, the saving of every single penny, never losing sight of his goal for a full 2 years. and then he walks for 2 days to get them. this is not a boy - this is a man who is inside the body of a boy. this is someone worthy of aspiration & imitation.

THIS is a tangible hero for children.

J. J. Zepfanman @...readers

rated it

Feb. 9, 2011