The Adventures of Johnny Chuck

The Bedtime Story Books

by Thornton W. Burgess

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

Genres: Animals, Fiction, Childrens, Classics, Fantasy, Nature, Middle Grade

49 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1913

About the author

Thornton W. (Waldo) Burgess (1874-1965), American author, naturalist and conservationist, wrote popular children's stories including the Old Mother West Wind (1910) series. He would go on to write more than 100 books and thousands of short-stories during his lifetime.

Thornton Burgess loved the beauty of nature and its living creatures so much that he wrote about them for 50 years in books and his newspaper column, "Bedtime Stories". He was sometimes known as the Bedtime Story-Man. By the time he retired, he had written more than 170 books and 15,000 stories for the daily newspaper column.

Born in Sandwich, Massachusetts, Burgess was the son of Caroline F. Haywood and Thornton W. Burgess Sr., a direct descendant of Thomas Burgess, one of the first Sandwich settlers in 1637. Thornton W. Burgess, Sr., died the same year his son was born, and the young Thornton Burgess was brought up by his mother in Sandwich. They both lived in humble circumstances with relatives or paying rent. As a youth, he worked year round in order to earn money. Some of his jobs included tending cows, picking trailing arbutus or berries, shipping water lilies from local ponds, selling candy and trapping muskrats. William C. Chipman, one of his employers, lived on Discovery Hill Road, a wildlife habitat of woodland and wetland. This habitat became the setting of many stories in which Burgess refers to Smiling Pool and the Old Briar Patch.

Graduating from Sandwich High School in 1891, Burgess briefly attended a business college in Boston from 1892 to 1893, living in Somerville, Massachusetts, at that time. But he disliked studying business and wanted to write. He moved to Springfield, Massachusetts, where he took a job as an editorial assistant at the Phelps Publishing Company. His first stories were written under the pen name W. B. Thornton.

Burgess married Nina Osborne in 1905, but she died only a year later, leaving him to raise their son alone. It is said that he began writing bedtime stories to entertain his young son, Thornton III. Burgess remarried in 1911; his wife Fannie had two children by a previous marriage. The couple later bought a home in Hampden, Massachusetts, in 1925 that became Burgess' permanent residence in 1957. His second wife died in August 1950. Burgess returned frequently to Sandwich, which he always claimed as his birthplace and spiritual home.

In 1960, Burgess published his last book, "Now I Remember, Autobiography of an Amateur Naturalist," depicting memories of his early life in Sandwich, as well as his career highlights. That same year, Burgess, at the age of 86, had published his 15,000th story. He died on June 5, 1965, at the age of 91 in Hampden, Massachusetts.

Reviews

[Louie the Mustache Matos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Because I'm obsessively self-aware, and meticulously compulsive, I decided to take my TBR (that had grown to ludicrous proportions) and attempt to bring it under control. Clearly, it will take me years to fulfill that objective, but I feel that I'm already beginning to experience progress. The Adventures of Johnny Chuck is one of the books I acquired over 10 years ago, when I received my first Kindle. This was a nostalgia acquisition from my childhood Bedtime Stories collection written by T. W. Burgess and lovingly illustrated by Harrison Cady. Here, Johnny Chuck has become restless with his life in the Green Meadows and with the coming of the Winsome Bluebird and the Sister South Wind, he feels the urge to migrate. Along his trip, the reader meets numerous animal friends and potential enemies / threats: Unc' Billy Possum, Digger the Badger, Striped Chipmunk, Bobby Coon, Peter Rabbit, Jimmy Skunk, Whitetail Marshhawk, Jerry Muskrat, Sammy Jay, and Ol' Mistah Buzzard. Eventually the reader learns why Johnny has felt this biological imperative (my words, not how it's rationalized in the book.) It all makes perfect sense and ends satisfactorily. This is my #27 of 50 from my Over 5 Yrs TBR reading goal of 2023.

[Noella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ik vond dit een van de mindere verhaaltjes uit de reeks. Johnny Chuck is niet meer tevreden op de Green Meadows, hij wil de wereld zien. Hij geeft zijn huis aan Jimmy Skunk en trekt erop uit. Maar ver geraakt hij niet. Hij is zeer humeurig en heeft een gevecht met een oudere Chuck (marmot?) Nog steeds gefrustreerd ziet hij een tijdje later nog een andere Chuck en hij gaat er op af. Maar het blijkt een vrouwtje te zijn, Polly Chuck. Het kost Johnny nogal wat moeite om Polly te versieren, maar uiteindelijk willen ze dan toch een gezinnetje stichten. Johnny bouwt een nieuw huis op het einde van de boomgaard van Farmer Brown, en denkt dat het goed verborgen is. Maar Samùy Jay ontdekt het hol, en licht Reddy Fox in. Gelukkig kunnen de Chucks ontsnappen aan de vos. Sammy Jay blijft hen echter in het oog houden, en op een dag ziet hij dat Polly heel voorzichtig naar buiten komt met drie kleintjes. Sammy vindt ze wel grappig. Eerst wil hij dit nieuws gaan doorvertellen aan de vos, maar dan bedenkt hij zich, want hij zou het jammer vinden mocht die grappige kleine Chucks iets overkomen. Uiteindelijk waarschuwt hij Johnny en de kleintjes zelfs als hij Farmer Brown's Boy ziet aankomen, zodat de Chucks naar hun veilige holletje kunnen vluchten . Eigenlijk is Sammy Jay nog de slechtste niet.

[forthefamilyssake Hailey White · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible! It truly does not get any better when it comes to children's literature.

[Ashley Jacobson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute story, but not as fun or relatable as Reddy Fox. The kids lost interest quickly. The main character gets married and has a family, not something they relate to. And the situations aren’t nearly as exciting. But there are good lessons at the end, about people (or animals 😊) who seem bad not being all bad. And about obedience. So good, but not great.

[Boyschool · Rating 5 out of 5]

Darling

Such a darling little book. 2 chapters at bedtime is just right for 3-10 year olds. Everything is sweet and pure and innocent including wonderful lessons and morals!

[Jason Pierce · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars rounded up to three, but it was a close thing. Close to staying at two, that is.

April second was International Children's Book Day, and this one won out for me this year. I think I have a 1941 version (it looks like it could be that old). It was on my shelf as a child, and I think it was my mother's when she was a girl. She agrees that it wasn't exactly riveting. I remember trying to read this in elementary school and just not getting hooked. I wasn't hooked this time either, but it's easy reading, and it's a good thing International Children's Book Day falls at the same time that tax season is at its worst, and I can use that as an excuse to tackle light reading. This was 191 pages, but it has plenty of pictures, is large print, and on small pages. It took me five days. Any other time of year I could've gotten this done in maybe an hour or two in one sitting.

I'm not exactly sure what the target audience for this book is. The writing style indicates that it's for very young readers. Several words and sentences are repeated which indicates an effort to further a child's vocabulary and spelling. However there are situations which only an older reader or adult would appreciate. For example, when Johnny Chuck is looking for a house for him and Polly Chuck, Polly keeps changing her mind about the site as soon as Johnny starts digging which is just like a wife (this was written in 1913). I guess it's like the old Loony Tunes cartoons; kids would see this as funny in one way whereas adults would pick up on an extra layer of humor.

I wasn't sure if I was going to make it through the first chapter without fwowing up. Take this (please!):

And then gentle Sister South Wind arrived. She came in the night, and in the morning there she was, hard at work making the Green Meadows and the Green Forest ready for Mistress Spring. She broke the icy bands that had bound the Smiling Pool and the Laughing Brook so long; and the Smiling Pool began to smile once more, and the Laughing Brook to gurgle and then to laugh and finally to sing merrily.

She touched the little banks of snow that remained, and straightway they melted and disappeared. She kissed the eight babies of Unc' Billy Possum, and they kicked off the bedclothes under which old Mrs. Possum had tucked them and scrambled out of the big hollow tree to play.

She peeped in at the door of Johnny Chuck and called softly, and Johnny Chuck awoke from his long sleep and yawned and began to think about getting up. She knocked at the door of Digger the Badger, and Digger awoke. She tickled the nose of Striped Chipmunk, who was about half awake, and Striped Chipmunk sneezed and then he hopped out of bed and hurried up to his doorway to shout good morning after her, as she hurried over to see if Bobby Coon was still sleeping.

Well, isn't that so cute you could just shit? Luckily that kind of thing was few and far between, but it made me think of Dumbledore's commentary in The Tales of Beedle the Bard when he's describing Beatrix Bloxam's efforts to rewrite some old stories "according to her ideals, which she expressed as filling the pure minds of our little angels with healthy, happy thoughts, keeping their sweet slumber free of wicked dreams, and protecting the precious flower of their innocence...

Mrs. Bloxam's tale has met the same response from generations of Wizarding children: uncontrollable retching, followed by an immediate demand to have the book taken from them and mashed into pulp."

The Adventures of Johnny Chuck didn't elicit that response from me, but if the entire thing had been written in the style I sampled above, then I doubt I would've made it to the end. As it is, Johnny Chuck's adventures aren't all that adventurous. He leaves his house to see the world, fights someone at one point, then meets a girl chuck, settles down in a new place, and begins to raise a family. He's quite possessive of his privacy, but he has to deal with an asshole of a bird who likes to create trouble, but the trouble isn't too bad, and the bird eventually decides to not be as much of a dick as he's used to being.

This wasn't a bad book, but I have a hard time seeing kids nowadays appreciating it unless it's read to them when they're really young.

[Jimyanni · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Thornton Burgess series in general is quite an endearing series of children's books, which do a fine job of being readable by young readers and having interesting plots and introducing young people to a variety of animals in a semi-anthropomorphized way. This particular entry, "The Adventures of Johnny Chuck" is not a bad entry in the series; if it over-romanticizes what happens during mating season, well, it IS a children's book, after all, and if it's take on mating season is rather thoroughly sexist, it WAS written over a hundred years ago, so I'm willing to cut it a little slack. It's a fun read for a youngster, or for an older person who is willing to be a child again for the hour or so that it would take to read it, so long as one recognizes that the attitude shown toward Polly Chuck (Johnny's mate) is severely outdated.

[Katja Labonté · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars & 3/10 hearts. Johnny Chuck... a funny, wise, brave little fellow. I enjoyed his story, even if the part with Polly made me think very much of Peter Rabbit & Little Miss Fuzzytail. ;) 

A Favourite Quote: “‘When work there is that must be done / Don’t fret and whine and spoil the day! / The quicker that you do your work / The longer time you’ll have to play.’” 
A Favourite Beautiful Quote: “The Merry Little Breezes ... had danced across the Green Meadows up to the old orchard, where they pelted each other with white and pink petals of apple blossoms until the ground was covered. Each apple-tree was like a huge bouquet of loveliness.”
A Favourite Humorous Quote: “‘What are you screaming so for?’ [Reddy snapped]. 
“‘Just to exercise my lungs, so as to be sure that I can scream when I want to,’ replied Sammy, screaming still louder. 
“‘Well, go somewhere else and scream; I want to sleep,’ said Reddy crossly. 
“Now Sammy Jay knew perfectly well that Reddy Fox had no thought of taking a nap but was hiding there to try to catch Johnny Chuck. And Sammy knew that Farmer Brown’s ... knew that when Sammy screamed that way it meant there was a fox about.... So he screamed louder than ever. Reddy Fox lost his temper. He sat up and called Sammy Jay all the bad names he could think of.... He told Sammy Jay what he thought of him and what he would do to him if ever he caught him. Sammy Jay kept right on screaming.”

[Pauline · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading books from this series when I was little. I don't remember reading this one but I can't be sure. I suppose I read it partly out of nostalgia, partly to see if it was still enjoyable to read, and partly just because the selection of audiobooks is limited and this was at least a known quantity, so to speak, "easy listening" while riding my exercise bike. I might read another one, one that I am sure I have read before (Chatterer was always my favorite), to see how I find it now. On the whole it was enjoyable but not anything special. Like any children's book from that era it is more moralizing (or at least more obviously so) than I'm used to now. (I don't remember having that impression when I was little, but then, that was several decades closer to when they had been written.)

[Shirley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another good Burgess book. I didn't like this one as much as some of the others. Johnny Chuck is out of sorts for no particular reason for the first half of the book which wasn't as enjoyable, but he is much better by the end of the book. This one apparently comes right before Peter Rabbit.

[Natasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked how the point was made in one of the last chapters that people/critters who don't work are apt to grow lazy and the value of a strong work ethic.

Spoiler: There is also a bit of a love story and three little surprises at the end.

[Jon E · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought it was exciting when on the chapter "A New House At Last", that's the chapter that I liked.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was really hard for me to get into the book at first but once I did it was a pretty good book

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the Thornton Burgess books as a kid. Going through my parents’ house I found the collection of them and was reminded of hours of enjoyment

[Leila Chandler · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I could rate this more than 5 stars I would. This book was flipping hilarious.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jahz: "I learned a lot about Johnny Chuck and Polly Chuck and the three little baby Chucks. They were so cute and funny! Hahaha!"

[Mary Frances · Rating 5 out of 5]

From a 5 yr old

Ella gives this 5 stars, “because I love it!”. All the parts were here favorite parts except when Sammy Jay was being rude and told Johnny Chuck’s secret.

[sincerely · Rating 5 out of 5]

Librovox

[Cherie Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thornton Burgess audiobooks come in clutch for weeks with sick days!

[Jannia González · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still not as good as Old Mother West Wind but we are big fans of Johnny Chuck!

[Summer Lukasiewicz · Rating 4 out of 5]

a delightful read aloud

[Willow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read to E (age 5). Loved it.

[Jonathan Marshall · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Burgess Books

This is a phrase that brings a smile to my face as often as I hear it. As a young child, I would lose myself for hours in the simple world of the wood and pond inhabited by Little Joe Otter, Buster Bear, Grandfather Frog, and terrorized by Farmer Brown's Boy. I can remember the very shelf, even the exact spot in the little library in Felton, CA where these books were kept. I would return practically every week with a new armload to last me until our next trip to the library. Often I would carry out stories that I read several times before, just so I could once again escape into this imaginary world of furry mischief.

I remember these books well in concept, though the specifics of most of the stories elude me. It was easily fifteen years ago when I began reading them and has been over a decade since I last picked up one of Burguess' stories to read it. That being said, this review is being written as a look back.

These stories are very simple and very fun. Of course, they are children's literature, so that's to be expected, but these stories strike me as especially so. Even still, I can remember some fascinating things I gleaned between the their covers.

For one thing, Burgess did a fantastic job of presenting the ideas of persepective and motivation in simplistic terms. For example, "The Adventures of Danny Field Mouse" would cast Old Man Coyote as a vicious, mean creature wishing to prey on Danny and his friends and family. Yet, pick up instead "The Adventures of Old Man Coyote" and you'll see that when the story is told with him as the protagonist, those pesky field mice are annoying and useful for little more than a snack. After reading both books, you're no more inclined to think of Old Man Coyote as a villian than you are to think of Danny Field Mouse as a pest that should be exterminated. (Note: This is a generic example. I do not recall if Old Man Coyote plays a role in Danny Field Mouse's story or the other way around, but this concept was presented several times. It made an impression on me.)

The only characters consistantly presented as antagonists were Farmer Brown and his boy. This would be one of the only things that I chalk up as odd, or maybe just a little "off" in these books. Humans and their influence on nature are presented as a negative influence on nature and animals - always. It's interesting to note though that while humans are seen as a negative, humanity is lauded and held up as virtuous. All of the animals take on not only human personalities but characteristics, traits, and mannerisms. From a frog with a monocle and an otter with a handkerchief tied to a stick, to a busy-body Jay and a reclusive owl who desires only to be left alone, humanity and it's traits keep cropping up.

Which would be another thing of value I feel that I saw in the Burgess books. These stories are full of social interaction and personality conflicts, even if they are charicatured more often than not. We see over and over again a working out of peace, if not harmony, between conflicting personalities. It may not always be easy to point out a scripture to reinforce the lesson implied, but social harmony is presented and more often than not, resolution is through reconciliation, forgiveness, or a similar method that is not only laudable, but distinctly Christian in action if not motivation.

All in all, the world created by Thornton W. Burgess is imaginative, innocent, fun, and educational. My reccomendation? Grab a handful from your local library, gather a group of kids as an excuse, and lose yourselves in childhood imaginations as you read aloud the stories that have captivated several generations of young readers with the antics of our furry, albiet elusively human, friends.

(Disclaimers: As I said, it has been over a decade since I actually read one of Burgess' books. As such, there may be a specific example that's a little off in this review or something that I would have noticed as an adult that my childhood memories are missing. Also, all of these books say I read them in 1998. While I'm certain I read several of them that year, I'm sure I read some before and after that date as well.)

[Nguyenflower · Rating 4 out of 5]

The adventure of Johnny Chuck is one in the 12 stories in the series about life in the meadow written by Thorton W. Burgess. The book tells the story of Johnny Chuck who is curious to see the world and wants to escape from the tedious and repetitive life that he leads. Johnny takes the courage to quit his familiar tunnel to move to a new place and start a new adventure and eventually has a family of his own to care for. This is a story of courage, love, responsibility, and adventure that not only thrills children but adults alike.
What I love most about the story is its message of courage. Although Johnny has the best, safest place in the meadow, he doesn't hesitate to give it to Jimmy Skunk to lead a wandering life. Thus, Johnny's decision urges us to think of and ask ourselves the purpose of our existence and challenges us to come out of our comfort zone , no matter what it takes.
Also, the author succeeds in describing how Johnny has changed from a carefree young man into adulthood. Because of love, he puts his wife's wish for where to dig their tunnel on top priority. Because of love, he patiently teaches his kids survival life skills, taking into consideration the fact that the cunning Red Fox is always a major threat to their safety. In other words, Johnny has shown he is ready for his new role as a dedicated husband and as a dad, which clearly seems to suit him.

[Emma Filbrun · Rating 4 out of 5]

Johnny Chuck is feeling very discontented this spring. When Jimmy Skunk tells him what a nice house he has, he snaps back that Jimmy Skunk can have it—and stomps off in a huff to find another place to live! Not until he meets Polly Chuck does he realize what his real problem was, and now it is solved. He has a new problem, though: can he keep Reddy Fox and Redtail the Hawk from discovering his new home and babies?

Read my full review here.

[Carolyn Lind · Rating 3 out of 5]

Johnny Chuck,a lovable little fellow, is a favorite among the creatures of pond, field and forest of the Thornton W. Burgess books I have enjoyed since childhood. Rereading more recently, however, I have discovered that common expressions and prejudices that existed in the era when these books were written also found their way into these stories, especially in the treatment of the character, Billy Possum. My copy of the book from Dover Publishers does include illustrations.

[R.A. Danger · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is oe of the better books of this series. Jonny Chuck goes from being a journey chuck to trying to win the heart of a timid lady chuck even then Johnny Chuck has to be careful of enemies. In the end Johnny Chuck doesn't fill dissatisfied with his house and were he lived anymore. I'll just let you found out what happen in the book.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ah, young love in the springtime. I could almost visualize the "Nature" program that would follow this same plot as it went along: Johnny Chuck wakes up in springtime refreshed from his hibernation and goes off in search of a mate with whom to start a cute little family of baby chucks. I especially loved how Sammy Jay kept watch over the little family and alerted them to danger!

[Elaine B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved these as a child. Wish I could find and buy them today!