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Moni the Goat-Boy
Moni the Goat-Boy follows the story of Solomon, nicknamed Moni, a Swiss lad who's convinced he's got the sweetest job ever--- goat-boy of his home village. Every day he collects the one or two goats owned by each village household and leads them up the mountain to find fresh grazing. He loves the goats, and he trusts in the Lord to help him when he has to rescue a goat who's gotten in to a dangerous place on the high mountain.
One day Moni's friend Jörgli confides that he has found a valuable piece of jewelry lost by a tourist, and that he intends to sell it to a hotel girl. Moni insists that it would be wrong to do so. Jörgli assures Moni's silence by telling him that his very favorite goat is to be butchered, but that Jörgli will save the goat if Moni keeps silence.
Moni agrees, but his usual cheerful manner is gone because of the oppressive secret. When he realizes that he will from now on be unable to ask the Lord for help if he needs to take risks to rescue a goat, on account of the burden of his sin, he begins to think that he will have to tell the truth even if it does cost him the life of his best goat-friend.
The conclusion of the story tells of Moni's decision and its consequences. The story, filled with local color of the Alps, is a delightful one for all ages. The Christian content of the story is very natural and beautiful, not in the least intrusive to the story.
One day Moni's friend Jörgli confides that he has found a valuable piece of jewelry lost by a tourist, and that he intends to sell it to a hotel girl. Moni insists that it would be wrong to do so. Jörgli assures Moni's silence by telling him that his very favorite goat is to be butchered, but that Jörgli will save the goat if Moni keeps silence.
Moni agrees, but his usual cheerful manner is gone because of the oppressive secret. When he realizes that he will from now on be unable to ask the Lord for help if he needs to take risks to rescue a goat, on account of the burden of his sin, he begins to think that he will have to tell the truth even if it does cost him the life of his best goat-friend.
The conclusion of the story tells of Moni's decision and its consequences. The story, filled with local color of the Alps, is a delightful one for all ages. The Christian content of the story is very natural and beautiful, not in the least intrusive to the story.
43 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1993
5 people are currently reading
107 people want to read
About the author
Johanna Spyri
1,308 books972 followersJohanna Spyri was a Swiss author of children's stories, best known for Heidi. Born Johanna Louise Heusser in the rural area of Hirzel, Switzerland, as a child she spent several summers in the area around Chur in Graubünden, the setting she later would use in her novels.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
May 16, 2024
Audible Plus 50 min. Narrated by Kim Hicks (B)
This is a short story from the author of one of my childhood favorite books, HEIDI. An orphaned boy is adopted by his poor Christian grandmother. Moni has been the goat keeper of the village for two years and has developed a deep affection for a young goat. Moni is known for his cheerful singing and yodeling, which is appreciated by the villagers, the owner of a guesthouse, and the guests. Moni had been instructed by his grandmother to appreciate the closeness of the LORD as he spends his time high in the mountain. God sees all and knows all; God guides and protects. Moni is thrust into a precarious position as he is entrusted with a secret that requires a decision that affects the life of his favorite young goat. When he gives into a deceitful plan, Moni loses his sunny attitude and his song. Even the weather turns against Moni as he struggles with his troubled spirit and his peace of heart as he realizes the Lord has seen his actions and will hold him accountable. Will Moni make the right choice? Will it cost him the life of his goat? Can Moni trust the Lord with his decision?
This is a sweet story for children with clear spiritual lessons.
From a collection of stories for children by famous authors.
This is a short story from the author of one of my childhood favorite books, HEIDI. An orphaned boy is adopted by his poor Christian grandmother. Moni has been the goat keeper of the village for two years and has developed a deep affection for a young goat. Moni is known for his cheerful singing and yodeling, which is appreciated by the villagers, the owner of a guesthouse, and the guests. Moni had been instructed by his grandmother to appreciate the closeness of the LORD as he spends his time high in the mountain. God sees all and knows all; God guides and protects. Moni is thrust into a precarious position as he is entrusted with a secret that requires a decision that affects the life of his favorite young goat. When he gives into a deceitful plan, Moni loses his sunny attitude and his song. Even the weather turns against Moni as he struggles with his troubled spirit and his peace of heart as he realizes the Lord has seen his actions and will hold him accountable. Will Moni make the right choice? Will it cost him the life of his goat? Can Moni trust the Lord with his decision?
This is a sweet story for children with clear spiritual lessons.
From a collection of stories for children by famous authors.
May 27, 2012
Moni the Goat-Boy follows the story of Solomon, nicknamed Moni, a Swiss lad who's convinced he's got the sweetest job ever--- goat-boy of his home village. Every day he collects the one or two goats owned by each village household and leads them up the mountain to find fresh grazing. He loves the goats, and he trusts in the Lord to help him when he has to rescue a goat who's gotten in to a dangerous place on the high mountain.
One day Moni's friend Jörgli confides that he has found a valuable piece of jewelry lost by a tourist, and that he intends to sell it to a hotel girl. Moni insists that it would be wrong to do so. Jörgli assures Moni's silence by telling him that his very favorite goat is to be butchered, but that Jörgli will save the goat if Moni keeps silence.
Moni agrees, but his usual cheerful manner is gone because of the oppressive secret. When he realizes that he will from now on be unable to ask the Lord for help if he needs to take risks to rescue a goat, on account of the burden of his sin, he begins to think that he will have to tell the truth even if it does cost him the life of his best goat-friend.
The conclusion of the story tells of Moni's decision and its consequences. The story, filled with local color of the Alps, is a delightful one for all ages. The Christian content of the story is very natural and beautiful, not in the least intrusive to the story.
Johanna Spyri (1827-1901) was a Christian author best known for the book 'Heidi' which was filmed several times, including one version with Shirley Temple in the starring role. No movie version has yet done justice to the profound Christian orientation of that book.
Johanna Spyri was one of six children born to a doctor and a Pietist poetess. When she married, she suffered depression after the birth of her only child. She was encouraged to begin writing, and wrote many stories of faith with rural Swiss settings. While Heidi is the only one of her works known in the English-speaking world today, many others are still available in German.
Moni the Goat Boy is available for free on ManyBooks.net both in English and the original German. Many ebook formats, including Kindle, are available.
One day Moni's friend Jörgli confides that he has found a valuable piece of jewelry lost by a tourist, and that he intends to sell it to a hotel girl. Moni insists that it would be wrong to do so. Jörgli assures Moni's silence by telling him that his very favorite goat is to be butchered, but that Jörgli will save the goat if Moni keeps silence.
Moni agrees, but his usual cheerful manner is gone because of the oppressive secret. When he realizes that he will from now on be unable to ask the Lord for help if he needs to take risks to rescue a goat, on account of the burden of his sin, he begins to think that he will have to tell the truth even if it does cost him the life of his best goat-friend.
The conclusion of the story tells of Moni's decision and its consequences. The story, filled with local color of the Alps, is a delightful one for all ages. The Christian content of the story is very natural and beautiful, not in the least intrusive to the story.
Johanna Spyri (1827-1901) was a Christian author best known for the book 'Heidi' which was filmed several times, including one version with Shirley Temple in the starring role. No movie version has yet done justice to the profound Christian orientation of that book.
Johanna Spyri was one of six children born to a doctor and a Pietist poetess. When she married, she suffered depression after the birth of her only child. She was encouraged to begin writing, and wrote many stories of faith with rural Swiss settings. While Heidi is the only one of her works known in the English-speaking world today, many others are still available in German.
Moni the Goat Boy is available for free on ManyBooks.net both in English and the original German. Many ebook formats, including Kindle, are available.
March 6, 2023
Read as part of the collection Moni the Goat-Boy and Other Stories.
March 27, 2025
(I had to read this for school, and I need to do an advertisement review, so here goes. )
Have you ever wanted (for some reason) to read a book all about a kid who talks more to goats then humans? Well then, this is the book for you! Moni is a goat guy who takes goats up the mountain to eat. I "liked" the idea of an egg carrier, and a goat named Brownie(what a cute name!) is what stood out to me. That is all I have to say about this book.
Have you ever wanted (for some reason) to read a book all about a kid who talks more to goats then humans? Well then, this is the book for you! Moni is a goat guy who takes goats up the mountain to eat. I "liked" the idea of an egg carrier, and a goat named Brownie(what a cute name!) is what stood out to me. That is all I have to say about this book.
January 28, 2012
Moni is the goat boy who takes care of all the goats belonging to the people of Fideris, Switzerland. He loves to sing, yodel, and whistle while he romps with the goats all day long on the mountains. His favorite is a young kid named Mäggerli. One day Moni comes across a serious situation where he must keep a deceitful secret in order to protect Mäggerli from being killed. Will Moni risk the life of Mäggerli and tell the truth? This delightful short story teaches children that to trust God and do right is always better than being deceitful.
I read this book for LibriVox and here is the catalog page: http://librivox.org/moni-the-goat-boy... 1 hr 2 min
I read this book for LibriVox and here is the catalog page: http://librivox.org/moni-the-goat-boy... 1 hr 2 min
October 4, 2015
I understand that many children's stories from the 19th century contained moral lessons, but this particular tale seemed too trite for me.
November 2, 2016
Such a sweet story. Loved it so much.
August 16, 2020
What a sweet little short story of a goat boy and all his goats he cared for.
He loved his job taking the goats up to the mountains each day, eating what was provided by God and being up so close to him. When one baby kid almost got hurt he knew he had God at his side to help him save her. When one other boy came up near him one day though having found something valuable he tests the boys conscious over telling or saving the baby kid. He must decide himself what was the right thing by god.
It was really honestly so sweet, so short though I could have listened to more of this story, of Moni and his goats of his budding friendship with Paula and his life long adventures caretaking for all these goats. It’s so vividly described as all of Johanna’s books are taking you to the breathtaking mountains.
Narrator review: Abigail Rasmussen is the narrator on this one and was actually incredibly good at her job, she is very clear in sharing the story, she is animated and expresses the emotions of the characters perfectly. I really enjoyed having her as the narrator on this one.
He loved his job taking the goats up to the mountains each day, eating what was provided by God and being up so close to him. When one baby kid almost got hurt he knew he had God at his side to help him save her. When one other boy came up near him one day though having found something valuable he tests the boys conscious over telling or saving the baby kid. He must decide himself what was the right thing by god.
It was really honestly so sweet, so short though I could have listened to more of this story, of Moni and his goats of his budding friendship with Paula and his life long adventures caretaking for all these goats. It’s so vividly described as all of Johanna’s books are taking you to the breathtaking mountains.
Narrator review: Abigail Rasmussen is the narrator on this one and was actually incredibly good at her job, she is very clear in sharing the story, she is animated and expresses the emotions of the characters perfectly. I really enjoyed having her as the narrator on this one.
May 2, 2022
“The sky had now become a deep blue. Above were the high mountains with peaks towering to the sky and great ice fields appearing; and far away down below, the green valley shone in the morning light (From Moni the Goat Boy).” “Moni the Goat Boy” by Johanna Spyri was an excellent book! Not only was the description wonderful, but Moni had great character. He was always kind and loving towards his goats and anyone he met. And he trusted in the lord to protect him while he was watching over his flock. He also was very honest. Even though he was supposed to keep a “secret” when his friend found something that wasn’t his, he told the truth and felt much better afterward. It even benefited him to be honest. This book was very engaging and all the description brought it to life. I enjoyed it very much and I would highly recommend it!
July 28, 2018
A short story about the consequences of not doing right immediatly
A boy has joy in his heart until he is asked to keep a secret that he feels is wrong, but he agrees so that something he cherishes may be saved. He is miserable because he knows God saw what he did and while keeping the secret can't ask for God's help should he face danger. He finally comes to a decision about the secret and learns a lesson about the consequences of one's decisions.
This is a short story that takes about 30 minutes to read.
A boy has joy in his heart until he is asked to keep a secret that he feels is wrong, but he agrees so that something he cherishes may be saved. He is miserable because he knows God saw what he did and while keeping the secret can't ask for God's help should he face danger. He finally comes to a decision about the secret and learns a lesson about the consequences of one's decisions.
This is a short story that takes about 30 minutes to read.
September 17, 2024
Moni the Goat Boy by Johanna Spyri is a wonderful book, it starts off with Moni in the mountains with his flock and his meeting of a young lady and her aunt. He is a very happy and cheerful boy who loves his goats dearly. One day he sees his friend and they make a deal that leaves Moni feeling guilty and sad. This book has very good messages about faith and trust in the Lord, repentance, and the joy animals can bring us. It was also entertaining and very positive. I gave it 4 stars because it could have had more of a story line, but overall it was a pretty good book.
March 7, 2018
Oozing with saccharine wholesomeness
Moni is a happy, singing goat-boy. Moni's friend finds a cross on the ground and plans to sell it. Moni urges him to do the right thing. The friend threatens to kill Moni's favorite goat if Moni doesn't keep quiet. Moni stops singing. And then he does the right thing and sings again. The end.
Moni is a happy, singing goat-boy. Moni's friend finds a cross on the ground and plans to sell it. Moni urges him to do the right thing. The friend threatens to kill Moni's favorite goat if Moni doesn't keep quiet. Moni stops singing. And then he does the right thing and sings again. The end.
March 17, 2020
Honestly, this book was weird. I feel like Johanna Spyri’s Heidi was AMAZING, but all her other books are not that great. This book taught great lessons in friendship, honesty, and repentance though! I really liked Moni’s friendship with Mäggerli! All in all, this book needs work, but it was fine. Not very moving or anything, but it had so good lessons.
September 24, 2022
One of my grandma's favorite stories as a girl, so I had to get a copy and read it. It's a short and sweet story about a goat boy who is manipulated into keeping a secret to save one of his dear goats, but then when he can no longer sing or talk to God on the mountain, he has to confess the secret. The result is that everything is better than anyone thought it would be with the secret kept.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 27, 2025
Moni, by Johanna Spyri, is quite it's own story.
I didn't particularly enjoy this book; I feel like most of Spyri's stories are nearly the same.
However, this book did have positive attributes to it as well.
.The goats are adorable
.I liked the mountain setting
Overall, I think most young reader would enjoy this, but certainly not me.
I didn't particularly enjoy this book; I feel like most of Spyri's stories are nearly the same.
However, this book did have positive attributes to it as well.
.The goats are adorable
.I liked the mountain setting
Overall, I think most young reader would enjoy this, but certainly not me.
January 19, 2022
Excellent children’s literature that teaches good character; honesty, truthfulness, courage, etc… We were pleasantly surprised by this little book.
February 5, 2022
Another entertaining story with a profound moral presented in a way that children can truly learn from. I love this author so much.
January 7, 2023
Good story about morals.
December 9, 2020
DO NOT RATE THIS BOOK OFF OF HOW EXCITING IT IS!!!
I love this book and many other children's classics. I know this book is short and is not very exciting, but the point Johanna Spyri wanted to give to children wasn't to keep you on the edge of your seat. This book was made to teach kids the rewards of repentance, kindness, selflessness, and honesty. This is what kids used to read and enjoy. The books back then and the books now have changed a lot. Back then children's books were filled with stories teaching about good messages and God. Now the books children read have names like Captain Underpants and the Perilous Piot of Professor Poopypants and on top of that have very little good messages and the books children are encouraged to read today have no challenge.
I love this book and many other children's classics. I know this book is short and is not very exciting, but the point Johanna Spyri wanted to give to children wasn't to keep you on the edge of your seat. This book was made to teach kids the rewards of repentance, kindness, selflessness, and honesty. This is what kids used to read and enjoy. The books back then and the books now have changed a lot. Back then children's books were filled with stories teaching about good messages and God. Now the books children read have names like Captain Underpants and the Perilous Piot of Professor Poopypants and on top of that have very little good messages and the books children are encouraged to read today have no challenge.
June 22, 2021
An over-charitable 3 (2 on reconsideration!) stars for the translator’s work, or- something. The story? Simplistic, anti-non-religious (the villain of the piece can’t simply be a villain and a thief but needs to be religiously a Skeptic and scoffer as well; the author spares no effort- in a short story, a form which -should- resist padding- to praise her deity at every turn... etc.) I’m now much less enthusiastic about going on from here to read Heidi.
March 9, 2012
A Sweet and simple Johanna Spyri story... may not re-read it, but it kind of feels like a starter book by the author.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews