This is probably the second or third or....read for me.Papa leaves the family behind to drive cattle to Abliene and leaves Travis the oldest to look after his Mama, Arliss his annoying little brother and the homestead with daily chores of milking, firewood, hunting and tending to the crop of corn.During the time his father is gone an ugly, dingy, thieving yeller dog shows up. He is a smart and loyal stray even though Travis finds him a pest. Old Yeller becomes an important part of the family and...

This is an awesome classic. I believe this one should be a must read for all.

A boy, before he really grows up, is pretty much like a wild animal. He can get the wits scared clear out of him today and by tomorrow have forgotten all about it.Of course, everyone my age knows this story. The Wonderful World of Disney, introduced by Mr. Disney himself, fed a whole generation with delights of this sort; just put on the TV at 7:00 on Sunday night and watch something wonderful, but don’t forget because there is no DVR, so if you miss it, you are waiting for summer reruns. Becaus...

Old Yeller is a coming of age story about a boy named Travis and his family living in Salt Lick, Texas in the 1860s. Travis is fourteen years old and yearns to be a man. His father is leaving for Abilene on a trip to drive cattle for money, and Travis will be left to man their home until his father returns.“Now, Travis,” he said, “you’re getting to be a big boy; and while I’m gone, you’ll be the man of the family. I want you to act like one. You take care of Mama and Little Arliss. You look afte...

I can only conclude that there must be something terribly wrong with me, that I would embark on a third reading of Old Yeller.It's madness. It's the only explanation.I just felt as though my 10-year-old was ready. And she was. I guess I felt ready again, too.So we took on this 117 page classic from 1956, together, even though it had broken my heart twice before.I was wondering if this daughter would consider the language dated, but, no, she took it all in stride. She was surprisingly unfazed tha...

Amazing! There is a reason this book is such a classic. I cried at the end. What a dog that Yeller. A frontier family survive with the help of this scoundrel dog. This book is so grounded and down to earth. They had a lot of ingenuity living on the land as they did. I appreciated how Fred handled the emotions of the characters. Everything and everyone felt so real. I felt like they were living and breathing. Travis's emotional arch is touching. This is a work of art, it really is. I'm so glad I ...

This 1950s Pocket edition, purchased from a Sonoma used book store, presented today as a gift to my eight year old daughter (more on this later). After thanking me she asked me what it was about. I told her it's about a boy and his dog. She asked me if the dog dies. I told her he does, but that it is still a good book. She asked if I had read it. I told her I hadn't - only seen the movie. She asked me to read it for her first to make sure it wasn't too sad. She's on to me...Our 14 year-old prota...

“Now Travis,’ he said, “you’re getting to be a big boy, and while I’m gone, you’ll be the man of the family. I want you to act like one. You take care of mama and Little Arliss. You look after the work and don’t wait around for your mama to point out what needs to be done. Think you can do that?”“Yessir,” I said.His father had to go away to get some “cash money” by selling his steer. But the boy wanted a horse. The upshot being that if he acted as a man when his father was away, he would be rewa...

This review is for mothers and fathers of sons written by a man with no children. Forgive my presumptuousness, but please don't let my lack of experience stop you from reading. Here's the story of Old Yeller: Daddy, Mama, young son, and early teenage son live as a family on the Texas frontier. To provide for the family, Daddy has to go on a cattle drive to Kansas. Before he leaves, Daddy takes the oldest son aside and tells him he is going to have to be the man of the house since Daddy will be g...

Let me say first that some love this book and to be fair I never read it except to get an idea of the story. You will find in my books low ratings for Black Beauty, The Yearling, Old Yeller and any books that have the "pain of life motif" in common. By the way this includes Cold Mountain. Look up my review and you'll see I try to give recognition that it's well written but just not a book I can like. And these ratings are how I feel and what I think of these books. Some will say how they love th...