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roseleaf24's review against another edition
3.0
3.5, but just can't quite round up for the star rating. This is a quiet book, a little too wordy for me in the first chapter, but fewer adjectives and more story as the book continued. This is a literal pastoral, as a boy is sent to take the sheep with Old Ramon, and learns much of sheep, dogs, the desert, and life.
amandagstevens's review
4.0
Every so often, I read a children's book, just because. This one has been in my shelf for a while, snagged at a used-book store out of my love for Shane and Monte Walsh. The rhythmic, running-on voice of Jack Schaefer is immediately recognizable in this little story. He uses repetition of words and phrases to create a rugged poetry and he manages to stir emotion for the Old West in a carefully placed adjective here and there, like the "brave" circle of light from Ramon and the boy's fire.
This doesn't feel like a children's book, really. It's a timeless book, a hundred pages of gently rolling prose that tells of another time and leaves much unsaid. The setting is, of course, a main strength; but so are the conversations and relationship between Ramon and the boy and their dogs, the wisdom and stories Ramon imparts to the boy (I was reminded a bit of Santiago and Manolin, though that old man is alone with his sea for much of the book). I might not have had the patience for this book as a middle-grade reader; but of the obscure Newbery Honor books, this one is worth picking up. A gem with subdued yet lasting shine.
This doesn't feel like a children's book, really. It's a timeless book, a hundred pages of gently rolling prose that tells of another time and leaves much unsaid. The setting is, of course, a main strength; but so are the conversations and relationship between Ramon and the boy and their dogs, the wisdom and stories Ramon imparts to the boy (I was reminded a bit of Santiago and Manolin, though that old man is alone with his sea for much of the book). I might not have had the patience for this book as a middle-grade reader; but of the obscure Newbery Honor books, this one is worth picking up. A gem with subdued yet lasting shine.
allen_h's review against another edition
2.0
This is a story about an old sheep herder who is taking a young boy out to care for the flock in the summer for the first time. It tells of lessons learned, crossing a stream, finding water, dealing with the coyote and the wolf, and dealing with death and the trading of a sheep dog.
I found this book to be very random in the parts that make it up, and it didn't seem that there was an overall theme or purpose at times. I suppose it would just be the growing up and lessons learned by the boy.
I might have this book as a reader in my class, but honestly, it is sort of old and I wouldn't think many would choose to read it. It is a Newbery honor book, and that fact alone may cause someone to want to read it. Also, I might could see a boy who loved or trained dogs show interest in this book.
I found this book to be very random in the parts that make it up, and it didn't seem that there was an overall theme or purpose at times. I suppose it would just be the growing up and lessons learned by the boy.
I might have this book as a reader in my class, but honestly, it is sort of old and I wouldn't think many would choose to read it. It is a Newbery honor book, and that fact alone may cause someone to want to read it. Also, I might could see a boy who loved or trained dogs show interest in this book.
triscuit807's review against another edition
5.0
5 stars. This is a wonderful book, beautiful, wise, and brutal. A boy (teenager?) is accompanying an old shepherd (Ramon) at the behest of his father (the son of the herder's original patron) in order to learn the things not contained in books. In the first chapter the boy corrects Ramon who has just told him that sheep are the stupidest of animals; the boy says that chickens are stupider and the books he's read say that they're animals. Ramon disagrees (they're birds which are a separate kind of animal) and thus begins his instruction. As they herd the sheep to higher, greener pastures, they're helped by the brown dog, Pedro, and somewhat hindered by the young, black dog Sancho. Yes, this is a dog book too, and it's one of those dog books. The boy (never named) learns about sheep, loyalty, and the love of dogs as he travels with Ramon. I read this for my Reading Challenge (Bingo 2020 "setting vital to plot") and my Newbery Challenge (Honor 1961). I read this via Open Library/Internet Library due to the Covid 19 pandemic and library closures.
scaifea's review against another edition
2.0
A coming-of-age story about a boy who spends a summer with a sheep flock and the old man who tends them, learning about friendship and life.
Meh. I think my Newbery Books about Boys Shepherding in the Wilderness compartment is chockablock full at this point.
Meh. I think my Newbery Books about Boys Shepherding in the Wilderness compartment is chockablock full at this point.
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