The Case of the Night-Stalking Bone Monster (Hank the Cowdog

Hank the Cowdog #27

by John R. Erickson, Gerald L. Holmes (Illustrator)

Hank is the proud owner of three precious steak bones and protects his fortune, burying them in Sally May's garden. He meets Dog Pound Ralph. Returns to the garden... The bones are gone! He finds an empty Vienna sausage can in each hole. A night-stalking bone monster is loose on the ranch!

Genres: Childrens, Fiction, Adventure, Humor, Animals, Young Adult, Mystery

115 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1996

About the author

John R. Erickson, a former cowboy and ranch manager, is gifted with a storyteller's knack for spinning a yarn. Through the eyes of Hank the Cowdog, a smelly, smart-aleck Head of Ranch Security, Erickson gives readers a glimpse of daily life on a ranch in the West Texas Panhandle. This series of books and tapes is in school libraries across the country, has sold more than 7.6 million copies, is a Book-of-the-Month Club selection, and is the winner of the 1993 Audie for Outstanding Children's Series from the Audio Publisher's Association. Publishers Weekly calls Hank a "grassroots publishing phenomena," and USA Today says this is "the best family entertainment in years."

Hank the Cowdog made his debut in the pages of The Cattleman, a magazine for adults, and when Erickson started getting "Dear Hank" letters, he knew he was onto something. So in 1983, he self-published 2,000 copies of The Original Adventures of Hank the Cowdog, and they sold out in 6 weeks.

When teachers began inviting Erickson to their schools, Hank found his most eager fans. Teachers, librarians, and students alike love Hank. According to some Texas Library Association surveys, the Hank the Cowdog books are the most popular selections in many libraries' children's sections. The lively characters make excellent material for reading and writing lessons, and turn even the most reluctant readers into avid Hank-fans.

Erickson was born in Midland, Texas, but by the age of 3, he had moved with his family to Perryton, Texas, where he and his wife live today on their working cattle ranch. They have 3 grown children and 4 grandchildren. His advice to young writers is, "Write about something you know. Try to leave your readers better off than they were before."

Reviews

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my favorite Hank book, but still entertaining. Read with the 12 and 8 year old boys. This is right up their alley.

[Will Dole · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a super fun book; kids absolutely loved the audio version read by the author. High flying prose? Hardly. But enjoyable, quirky, life through the eyes of a dog who takes himself too seriously - as all dogs should.

[Norman Styers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good songs. If possible, listen to the audio book version.

[Amy Ballard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Suspenseful

[Ashley Hobgood · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had read this book out of curiosity. I liked the story because of the adventure, humor, and potential romance. I thought the novel was okay. It was a decent book but not a favorite.

[Books On the Ponderosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

My son listened to this one on a trip and finished it in a day. He KEPT laughing saying how funny this one was, so I have it 5 stars!! He says it’s “really good!”

[Darryl Cole · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read pretty much this entire series years ago after I descovered them in my elementary school libary. The plot, and characters are great. Plus these books are extremly funny. I loved this series then and I still love it.

[Carol Evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was cute and funny. Not outstanding, but Amber likes the series.

[Tyler Steele · Rating 4 out of 5]

The conversations between Hank and Drover in this is priceless!

[Trene1968 · Rating 3 out of 5]

solid hank book - Olympics really slowed down our family read aloud time;-)

[Dortha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it

[SSM · Rating 5 out of 5]

So funny.

[Sherry]

When the girls were little we would often read or listen to Hank the Cowdog stories...especially on vacation. The girls are grown now but on a recent trip we listened to our old friend Hank, Drover, Slim, Pete the Barn Cat, Buela the Collie, Rip and Snort, Loper, Sallie Mae...which made us smile and delivers a fun story. The author, writes the stories, draws the pictures and reads the stories, and sings the songs. Truly talented. The only difference is that now we can download the books from Audible.