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viachu888's review
5.0
I read this book in elementary school and some conversations with my friends about required school reading made me want to read it again. This is maybe the first book I have read through in like three or four years (being a STEM major is so fun haha) and I enjoyed it just as much as I did the first time.
I didn't intend on looking for literary devices in this book but I enjoyed some of the foreshadowing and symbolism Rawls used, especially already knowing the plot pretty well. I also thought the
I love this book. I love the imagery, I love the bond and juxtaposition between Little Ann and Old Dan, I love how much Billy loves the dogs. I don't even like hunting and I love reading about the hunts. This book is charming and pulls at my heart in a way that reminds me I am human. 5/5 stars!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I didn't intend on looking for literary devices in this book but I enjoyed some of the foreshadowing and symbolism Rawls used, especially already knowing the plot pretty well. I also thought the
Spoiler
fight with the mountain lion happened during the coon hunt competition, so I read that section fully prepared for the worst. When they won, made it out of the blizzard, and took home their spoils I was like, did I mis-remember this? Do the dogs live? I was mistaken. :'(. It seemed like an interesting choice to save the tragedy for the last 20 pages after a happy ending, but hey. It still totally got me.I love this book. I love the imagery, I love the bond and juxtaposition between Little Ann and Old Dan, I love how much Billy loves the dogs. I don't even like hunting and I love reading about the hunts. This book is charming and pulls at my heart in a way that reminds me I am human. 5/5 stars!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
sophia_med's review
adventurous
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.75
dezdamona's review
5.0
It is an amazing book. I really liked it. It has a very touching subject and plot. You will love this book when you start to read.
dnandrews797's review
3.0
This book was amazing but caused me emotional damage. Super glad I didn’t read this as a middle schooler because my mom would probably have had to come and get me from school. I loved the engaging episodic storytelling of Billy’s adventures with Little Ann and Old Dan in the Ozarks and the wonderful atmosphere and sense of youth created. What kept me from rating the book higher were two particular instances I couldn’t move past:
1. The cutting down of the giant sycamore to get at a raccoon. In terms of perspective, I feel like letting the raccoon and disappointing the dogs to preserve a tree that’s been growing for possibly hundreds of years would have been the right thing to do. Its this kind of thinking that’s ruining the planet today. Reading about this boy singlemindedly whacking away at something so ancient and majestic for the sake of killing one raccoon hurt me almost as much as the ending. Speaking of which…
2. I could deal with the dogs dying. Fine. I cried like a small child when it happened, but I could have dealt with their deaths if not for the fact that Billy’s parents basically said “well maybe it was all God’s plan for the dogs to die after they stopped being useful to us so we can all go live in the city. That was their purpose after all.” That felt extremely human-centered and arrogant as if all living creatures exist for their pleasure or to die for it (in the case of the raccoons).
Other than this it was a lovely little read that I blew through in an afternoon. I would recommend it to anyone.
1. The cutting down of the giant sycamore to get at a raccoon. In terms of perspective, I feel like letting the raccoon and disappointing the dogs to preserve a tree that’s been growing for possibly hundreds of years would have been the right thing to do. Its this kind of thinking that’s ruining the planet today. Reading about this boy singlemindedly whacking away at something so ancient and majestic for the sake of killing one raccoon hurt me almost as much as the ending. Speaking of which…
2. I could deal with the dogs dying. Fine. I cried like a small child when it happened, but I could have dealt with their deaths if not for the fact that Billy’s parents basically said “well maybe it was all God’s plan for the dogs to die after they stopped being useful to us so we can all go live in the city. That was their purpose after all.” That felt extremely human-centered and arrogant as if all living creatures exist for their pleasure or to die for it (in the case of the raccoons).
Other than this it was a lovely little read that I blew through in an afternoon. I would recommend it to anyone.
jp1920's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Not great, emotionally devastating though. If you didn’t cry at this book, don’t talk to me
bittersweet_symphony's review
5.0
A real treat in sentimentality, innocence, and earthiness. It's like Wendell Berry for the Juvenile Soul. It had been two decades since I last read this and it still fed (and engaged) me in the same way. Where the Red Fern Grows serves as a great guard against an age of rampant cynicism starving for something transcendent to care about.