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Two Dogs and a Horse
The spell of the wild country lies over these three rare stories by a master craftsman in portraying the creatures and moods of the wilderness. The tales are simple ones, with little violent action; they are, nevertheless, suspenseful and deeply moving in their presentations of three distrustful animals who had good reasons for fearing and even hating all men, and of the patient ways of three human beings who felt that this friendship was worth working for and proving.
One dog was relentlessly pursued as a killer wolf. The other was purposely deserted far from his home. The untamed black horse fastens his great teeth on the arm of the crippled cowhand trying to rescue him for a bog — but does not clamp them!
One dog was relentlessly pursued as a killer wolf. The other was purposely deserted far from his home. The untamed black horse fastens his great teeth on the arm of the crippled cowhand trying to rescue him for a bog — but does not clamp them!
95 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1964
11 people are currently reading
132 people want to read
About the author
Jim Kjelgaard
106 books163 followersan American author of young adult literature.
Born in New York City, New York, Jim Kjelgaard is the author of more than forty novels, the most famous of which is 1945's "Big Red." It sold 225,000 copies by 1956 and was made into a 1962 Walt Disney film with the same title, Big Red. His books were primarily about dogs and wild animals, often with animal protagonists and told from the animal's point of view.
Jim Kjelgaard committed suicide in 1959, after suffering for several years from chronic pain and depression.
- Wikipedia -
Born in New York City, New York, Jim Kjelgaard is the author of more than forty novels, the most famous of which is 1945's "Big Red." It sold 225,000 copies by 1956 and was made into a 1962 Walt Disney film with the same title, Big Red. His books were primarily about dogs and wild animals, often with animal protagonists and told from the animal's point of view.
Jim Kjelgaard committed suicide in 1959, after suffering for several years from chronic pain and depression.
- Wikipedia -
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
January 2, 2023
Two dogs and a Horse is comprised of 3 stories:
A Dog Remembers
The Black Horse
The Lake and the Lonely Exiles
The title page proudly says ‘Weekly Reader Children’ Book Club presents…’ so it is quick read. Overall, I enjoyed the book. There is not much room in short stories to fully develop the story but I think enough.
The first story, A Dog Remembers, had an ending that seemed a bit rushed.
The second one, The Black Horse, someone said is similar to Black Beauty, but I haven’t read that book so can only say it is the story of a wild black horse that someone through days of patience and a situation where the guy has to help the horse out, leads to taming the horse. I much prefer dog stories to horse stories but it was enjoyable enough.
The last story, The Lake with the Lonely Exiles, is about an abandoned dog that befriends a stranded goose and is my favorite in the book.
The big reason I liked the book and Jim Kjelgaard’s books in general is how lovingly he describes the wilds and the creatures in it. One way you can see that is in what he seems to put in every of his story and books, a paragraph bursting with observations of animals as if they are everywhere around you if you just take the time to look around. Here is one example:
‘Occasionally, the ripples on the surface was shattered or crossed by a curling V-wake that marked the watery trail of a swimming muskrat. At the far north end of the lake, a lithe doe, who had left her dappled fawn hidden in a thicket, sipped, raised a nervous head to look, and lower in to sip again. As though his last dark deed, the murder of a nesting mallard, could not abide the light, a snake-thin mink looked for a den in which he might lie up and found one in a hollow stump. Two crows, busily trying to pick up a dead fish that floated with white belly upward, cawed their disappointment or rising excitement as their fortunes waned or rose. Saucy, red-winged blackbirds tilted on bending rushes and whistled defiance to the rest of the world.’
Here is another example from the first story about the man who is the dog’s master who lives a simple life out in the woods:
‘He understood the hills, and all about them. He read furtive rustlings in the brush as understandingly as residents of Stauffer read their newspapers. He knew the winter’s den from which the she-bear, walking lean from her winter’s hibernation, took her cubs to meet the world. He could interpret the cries of the hawk, the screams of the jay. The pitch and tone of the wind, the sound of the rain, the formation of the clouds, the actions of birds, all told him secrets hidden from most men.’
Another thing I like about his books and stories is often his characters don’t complain much of hardships and just seek happiness in a simple life. For almost all of us we have to devote a lot of time to a career, have plenty of bills to pay, and a fair amount of responsibilities. The thought of a simple life structured around something you love is very appealing. In this next passage the main character in the Black Horse talks about how describes what he wants out of life after making his way through difficulties:
‘It was the biggest and most magnificent horse Jed had ever seen. He knew horses. Son of an indifferent mother and a father who vanished shortly after he was born, victim of paralysis in his childhood, he had spent all his life doing cores for Raglan and other stockmen in the hills. He had never earned more than ten dollars a month, but he had dreams and ambitions. If he could get only ten acres of land for himself, he would somehow or other procure a mare and make a living raising horses. That, for Jed, would be all he wanted of happiness.’
Jim Kjelgaard’s stories of the characters can be a bit predictable but it his predictable loving care of the wilds, of animals, and of the simple life, that make me enjoy this book as well as seek to read all of his books relating to dogs.
One last thing, I liked all the pencil drawing illustrations in the book, but found the noses of the horse and dogs on the cover seemed a little too elongated.
A Dog Remembers
The Black Horse
The Lake and the Lonely Exiles
The title page proudly says ‘Weekly Reader Children’ Book Club presents…’ so it is quick read. Overall, I enjoyed the book. There is not much room in short stories to fully develop the story but I think enough.
The first story, A Dog Remembers, had an ending that seemed a bit rushed.
The second one, The Black Horse, someone said is similar to Black Beauty, but I haven’t read that book so can only say it is the story of a wild black horse that someone through days of patience and a situation where the guy has to help the horse out, leads to taming the horse. I much prefer dog stories to horse stories but it was enjoyable enough.
The last story, The Lake with the Lonely Exiles, is about an abandoned dog that befriends a stranded goose and is my favorite in the book.
The big reason I liked the book and Jim Kjelgaard’s books in general is how lovingly he describes the wilds and the creatures in it. One way you can see that is in what he seems to put in every of his story and books, a paragraph bursting with observations of animals as if they are everywhere around you if you just take the time to look around. Here is one example:
‘Occasionally, the ripples on the surface was shattered or crossed by a curling V-wake that marked the watery trail of a swimming muskrat. At the far north end of the lake, a lithe doe, who had left her dappled fawn hidden in a thicket, sipped, raised a nervous head to look, and lower in to sip again. As though his last dark deed, the murder of a nesting mallard, could not abide the light, a snake-thin mink looked for a den in which he might lie up and found one in a hollow stump. Two crows, busily trying to pick up a dead fish that floated with white belly upward, cawed their disappointment or rising excitement as their fortunes waned or rose. Saucy, red-winged blackbirds tilted on bending rushes and whistled defiance to the rest of the world.’
Here is another example from the first story about the man who is the dog’s master who lives a simple life out in the woods:
‘He understood the hills, and all about them. He read furtive rustlings in the brush as understandingly as residents of Stauffer read their newspapers. He knew the winter’s den from which the she-bear, walking lean from her winter’s hibernation, took her cubs to meet the world. He could interpret the cries of the hawk, the screams of the jay. The pitch and tone of the wind, the sound of the rain, the formation of the clouds, the actions of birds, all told him secrets hidden from most men.’
Another thing I like about his books and stories is often his characters don’t complain much of hardships and just seek happiness in a simple life. For almost all of us we have to devote a lot of time to a career, have plenty of bills to pay, and a fair amount of responsibilities. The thought of a simple life structured around something you love is very appealing. In this next passage the main character in the Black Horse talks about how describes what he wants out of life after making his way through difficulties:
‘It was the biggest and most magnificent horse Jed had ever seen. He knew horses. Son of an indifferent mother and a father who vanished shortly after he was born, victim of paralysis in his childhood, he had spent all his life doing cores for Raglan and other stockmen in the hills. He had never earned more than ten dollars a month, but he had dreams and ambitions. If he could get only ten acres of land for himself, he would somehow or other procure a mare and make a living raising horses. That, for Jed, would be all he wanted of happiness.’
Jim Kjelgaard’s stories of the characters can be a bit predictable but it his predictable loving care of the wilds, of animals, and of the simple life, that make me enjoy this book as well as seek to read all of his books relating to dogs.
One last thing, I liked all the pencil drawing illustrations in the book, but found the noses of the horse and dogs on the cover seemed a little too elongated.
December 31, 2022
These are three slightly derivative, but enjoyable stories. The first, about a misunderstood dog, reminded me of an abbreviated White Fang, while the second was a hill country version of the Black Stallion. The last one was more original and I liked the goose. It was short and a nice way to end the year, as this is probably the last book I'll finish before the new year starts. Not a bad way to go out.
February 10, 2012
i love this book!!!
May 6, 2021
Two Dogs and a Horse is a collection of 3 short stories by Jim Kjelgaard. The first, A Dog Remembers, is about a large dog (really still a puppy) turned wild by circumstances, who must learn to survive and perhaps even to trust humanity again. In the second story, The Black Horse, a cowboy who has suffered a debilitating injury is in search of a wild black horse to turn his fortunes around. The last story, The Lake and the Lonely Exiles, showcases the other dog in the title, and an unlikely friendship that he forms.
These are great stories, short but with a heart. What I love about Jim Kjelgaard is that he writes animal stories so well without ever putting on them the characteristics of a human. He gets into their point of view, but never forgets it would be a completely different point of view than a person would have in the same circumstance. He doesn't overly complicate their thinking or feelings, but instead writes about what it must be to be a dog who has known only kindness and suddenly finds the people he depended on for warmth and comfort at odds with him continuing to breath. He also writes truly decent human characters, those who care for animals as other beings and not as possessions, and the relationships that form between them and their animal charges.
The Black Horse has appeared in other compilations that Sam Savitt has published, but the dog stories were new to me.
These are great stories, short but with a heart. What I love about Jim Kjelgaard is that he writes animal stories so well without ever putting on them the characteristics of a human. He gets into their point of view, but never forgets it would be a completely different point of view than a person would have in the same circumstance. He doesn't overly complicate their thinking or feelings, but instead writes about what it must be to be a dog who has known only kindness and suddenly finds the people he depended on for warmth and comfort at odds with him continuing to breath. He also writes truly decent human characters, those who care for animals as other beings and not as possessions, and the relationships that form between them and their animal charges.
The Black Horse has appeared in other compilations that Sam Savitt has published, but the dog stories were new to me.
November 14, 2017
This book contains 3 short stories...all were good. Jim Kjelgaard died in 1959. I wish he was alive so I could tell him how much I loved his books both as a child & as an adult. Simple stories reminding me of simpler times. They are a joy to read
October 1, 2018
Great short stories.
May 16, 2020
Good, but...
...these three stories are well written and engaging, but a bit predictable, too. Good for those times when weather makes us wait to go back outside.
...these three stories are well written and engaging, but a bit predictable, too. Good for those times when weather makes us wait to go back outside.
August 22, 2020
1964 - 3 stories - Have It - Read It Again
September 23, 2020
Three short stories involving animals and their trust in humankind shaken, and restored as each story comes to a conclusion.
March 6, 2022
Heart warming with a balance of a little of the evil of humans.
December 2, 2024
Great book!
May 26, 2025
I enjoyed this book simple read with beautiful art and heart. My favorite was the story of the dog befriending a hurt goose.
March 10, 2015
Three short stories of animals and people that I read with my kids. I don't read short stories often, but I thought these were well-written and had a lot of heart and my kids seemed to enjoy them a bit, too.
June 10, 2009
This is a collection of three stories by Jim Kjelgaard of Big Red fame. My boys liked it, especially the story about the horse.
July 2, 2010
very good book my father had when he was a boy very quick read but very much enjoyed this book hold ssweet realtionships with other animals and the sad realtionship between humans and animals
October 6, 2016
Not what I was expecting...I thought this was one story, not three. But they were good.
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September 17, 2007Kjelgaard, Jim
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews