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Born Naked: The Early Adventures of the Author of Never Cry Wolf – The Foundational Memoir with Mutt the Dog and Wol the Owl
Farley Mowat's youth was charmed and hilarious, and unbelievably free in its access to unspoiled nature through bird-banding expeditions and overnight outings in the dead of winter. The author writes of sleeping in haystacks for survival, and other adventures, with equal shares of Booth Tarkington and Jack London. He also brings back Mutt, the famous hero-dog of his classic THE DOG WHO WOULDN'T BE, and his pet owl Wol, hero of OWLS IN THE FAMILY. The tale of an outrageous and clever boy, BORN NAKED takes its place as the foundation of the Farley Mowat canon.
272 pages, Paperback
First published December 31, 1992
46 people are currently reading
557 people want to read
About the author
Farley Mowat
119 books651 followersFarley McGill Mowat was a conservationist and one of Canada's most widely-read authors.
Many of his most popular works have been memoirs of his childhood, his war service, and his work as a naturalist. His works have been translated into 52 languages and he has sold more than 14 million books.
Mowat studied biology at the University of Toronto. During a field trip to the Arctic, Mowat became outraged at the plight of the Ihalmiut, a Caribou Inuit band, which he attributed to misunderstanding by whites. His outrage led him to publish his first novel, People of the Deer (1952). This book made Mowat into a literary celebrity and was largely responsible for the shift in the Canadian government's Inuit policy: the government began shipping meat and dry goods to a people they previously denied existed.
The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society ship RV Farley Mowat was named in honour of him, and he frequently visited it to assist its mission.
Many of his most popular works have been memoirs of his childhood, his war service, and his work as a naturalist. His works have been translated into 52 languages and he has sold more than 14 million books.
Mowat studied biology at the University of Toronto. During a field trip to the Arctic, Mowat became outraged at the plight of the Ihalmiut, a Caribou Inuit band, which he attributed to misunderstanding by whites. His outrage led him to publish his first novel, People of the Deer (1952). This book made Mowat into a literary celebrity and was largely responsible for the shift in the Canadian government's Inuit policy: the government began shipping meat and dry goods to a people they previously denied existed.
The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society ship RV Farley Mowat was named in honour of him, and he frequently visited it to assist its mission.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews
April 20, 2017
Another delightful look into Mowat's youth, this book talks about how his parents got together and the adventures the family had from then until Farley was around sixteen years old.
The title refers to the fact that Mowat was not born with a caul over his head, something which his father said would be a sign that his son would be a sailor. Mowat was born as 'naked as everyone else', but he did quickly learn to love the ocean as well as almost every wild creature he came across.
He was one of those boys who was always bringing home critters, and his parents were way more indulgent than mine ever would have been. Mowat was lucky to have had the type of youth he had, to have seen many wonderful sights in Nature that most likely are no longer happening at the same levels, such as the huge bird and caribou migrations he witnessed.
He developed a conscience towards his beloved wildlife also. He learned early that he preferred studying a creature's life while it was living, as opposed to simply killing it and examining the remains. A trip to Churchill with his uncle especially helped him realize how outdated and harmful the old 'scientific' attitudes were. I am glad he followed his heart to a new way of seeing the world.
Mowat's famous dog Mutt was mentioned in these pages as well, but he was not the focus here the way he was in his own book, The Dog Who Wouldn't Be, my first and still favorite Mowat title. The best thing about Mutt here was the pictures. I finally got to see the actual dog; and the next time I read his book, I will have a more accurate mental picture!
I don't remember much about Mowat's mother from the other books I read, but here she comes to life for me. I have to say she put up with a lot more than I could have handled. Not so much from her son as from her husband. I felt sorry for her more than once, but she never gave up, and I had to laugh when she made this comment to friends after one little misadventure by Mowat. " "He gets it from his father. Has to be the center of attention, no matter what. Some day they'll both fall through their pants and hang themselves."
Mowat himself says the statement (which he overheard but never understood) haunted him for years. Well, yeah, I guess so! LOL.
The title refers to the fact that Mowat was not born with a caul over his head, something which his father said would be a sign that his son would be a sailor. Mowat was born as 'naked as everyone else', but he did quickly learn to love the ocean as well as almost every wild creature he came across.
He was one of those boys who was always bringing home critters, and his parents were way more indulgent than mine ever would have been. Mowat was lucky to have had the type of youth he had, to have seen many wonderful sights in Nature that most likely are no longer happening at the same levels, such as the huge bird and caribou migrations he witnessed.
He developed a conscience towards his beloved wildlife also. He learned early that he preferred studying a creature's life while it was living, as opposed to simply killing it and examining the remains. A trip to Churchill with his uncle especially helped him realize how outdated and harmful the old 'scientific' attitudes were. I am glad he followed his heart to a new way of seeing the world.
Mowat's famous dog Mutt was mentioned in these pages as well, but he was not the focus here the way he was in his own book, The Dog Who Wouldn't Be, my first and still favorite Mowat title. The best thing about Mutt here was the pictures. I finally got to see the actual dog; and the next time I read his book, I will have a more accurate mental picture!
I don't remember much about Mowat's mother from the other books I read, but here she comes to life for me. I have to say she put up with a lot more than I could have handled. Not so much from her son as from her husband. I felt sorry for her more than once, but she never gave up, and I had to laugh when she made this comment to friends after one little misadventure by Mowat. " "He gets it from his father. Has to be the center of attention, no matter what. Some day they'll both fall through their pants and hang themselves."
Mowat himself says the statement (which he overheard but never understood) haunted him for years. Well, yeah, I guess so! LOL.
May 28, 2013
A good friend met a female Canuck when traveling through Canada one summer. (She was from Vancouver) During a conversation about books she was shocked to find out he had never read any Mowat. She further explained he is (or was) required reading in Canadian schools and handed him Born Naked. Years later when discussing books he broke out Born Naked, told me it was now mine and I had to read it.
I loved it. Farley Mowat writing is intoxicating. He tells the story through the eyes of a 13 year old without sounding juvenile. Its hard to explain but once finished you crave more.
My father is (was) the same age as Mowat and this tale of life during the great depression though a child's eyes was life altering. The book is though the eyes of a Canadian boy but so similar to my father's tale I read it to him one one time when he was too old to read. We laughed and spoke of it for years to come.
From this point on I've read every book Farley Mowat has penned. I can't get enough and I feel like a better person for knowing his stories.
I loved it. Farley Mowat writing is intoxicating. He tells the story through the eyes of a 13 year old without sounding juvenile. Its hard to explain but once finished you crave more.
My father is (was) the same age as Mowat and this tale of life during the great depression though a child's eyes was life altering. The book is though the eyes of a Canadian boy but so similar to my father's tale I read it to him one one time when he was too old to read. We laughed and spoke of it for years to come.
From this point on I've read every book Farley Mowat has penned. I can't get enough and I feel like a better person for knowing his stories.
January 13, 2017
Gosh he writes beautifully. I think the era of writing (and speaking) so eloquently is soon past. This is a lovely little story. I need to go back to Saskatchewan.
May 11, 2014
This past week saw the death of one of my favorite authors, beloved Canadian writer Farley Mowat, at age 92. I haven't read all of his many works by any means, but the ones I enjoyed most were those books that told of his childhood, first in Ontario, and later (with "The Dog Who Wouldn't Be") in Saskatchewan. In his honor, I have been re-reading this volume, which tells of his birth and early years in Ontario. His father was a librarian, and not your image of a staid sort of librarian either. No, Angus Mowat was a real character and I have a funny feeling his son followed in his footsteps. This highly entertaining memoir details those halcyon days of the 1920s, before the Depression hit. It really sets the stage for the love of nature and of the "Others" (as he called other living creatures) that consumed the rest of Mowat's life. Here is a nice article and short film tribute that appeared in "The Globe and Mail":
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/b...
Mr. Mowat opened this book with this account of his father's first "aerial voyage" in 1950, during which he grabs a stewardess and points out an important landmark below:
"Look below, dammit! See that little island in the bay? That's Indian Island! And thirty years ago my son Farley was conceived in the lee of Indian Island in the sweetest little green canoe that ever was!"
Firmly removing his hand from her arm, the stewardess eased back into the narrow aisle. There she paused before replying evenly, "Congratulations, sir. That's quite an amazing feat...in any colour canoe." (from the Preface, entitled "In the Beginning")
Here's my recommendation for you, dear reader: Put a little Mowat in your life this week. I promise you'll be entertained. ;-)
PS If you can get your hands on it, there is a beautifully done little Canadian film (made in 2009) called "Finding Farley", in which a husband and wife team, along with their dog and two-year-old son, follow the path of some of Mowat's books. They travel, much of it by canoe, but also by car, train, and sailboat, from the Canadian prairies north to Hudson Bay, then east to Newfoundland, and finally to Mowat's home in Nova Scotia. There are some incredibly beautiful scenes of that vast land to our north, as well as haunting readings from Mowat's books, in which the reading is begun by the younger man as he journeys and then continued by Mowat himself. Just lovely!
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/b...
Mr. Mowat opened this book with this account of his father's first "aerial voyage" in 1950, during which he grabs a stewardess and points out an important landmark below:
"Look below, dammit! See that little island in the bay? That's Indian Island! And thirty years ago my son Farley was conceived in the lee of Indian Island in the sweetest little green canoe that ever was!"
Firmly removing his hand from her arm, the stewardess eased back into the narrow aisle. There she paused before replying evenly, "Congratulations, sir. That's quite an amazing feat...in any colour canoe." (from the Preface, entitled "In the Beginning")
Here's my recommendation for you, dear reader: Put a little Mowat in your life this week. I promise you'll be entertained. ;-)
PS If you can get your hands on it, there is a beautifully done little Canadian film (made in 2009) called "Finding Farley", in which a husband and wife team, along with their dog and two-year-old son, follow the path of some of Mowat's books. They travel, much of it by canoe, but also by car, train, and sailboat, from the Canadian prairies north to Hudson Bay, then east to Newfoundland, and finally to Mowat's home in Nova Scotia. There are some incredibly beautiful scenes of that vast land to our north, as well as haunting readings from Mowat's books, in which the reading is begun by the younger man as he journeys and then continued by Mowat himself. Just lovely!
November 21, 2010
Many years ago I read several Farley Mowat books. Some were the true stories of his adventures raising unique pets as a boy (The Dog Who Wouldn't Be, Owls in the Family.) Others were true tales of the beauty of nature and man's ravaging of it (A Whale For the Killing, Sea of Slaughter, Never Cry Wolf.) Throughout all of them was woven his fascination with the natural world. I loved this book because it explained to me exactly how Farley recognized and developed that fascination. It covers his life from birth to age sixteen and his family's frequent moves all over Canada as a result of his father's job with the library sytem. Wherever the Mowats went--prairies, the Arctic, cities--Farley found the wildlife and pursued his knowledge of them. He also began writing about his adventures at an early age. For me, this book rounded out my personal knowledge of Farley Mowat by revealing how he was definitely born with his giftedness as a writer and naturalist! It was also a window into life in Canada in the 1930's when the country was affected deeply by the Great Depression.
October 5, 2013
This was my second Farley Mowat book and now I'm completely hooked. I started off with "The Boat Who Wouldn't Float", in which Mowat describes his misadventures while trying to sail an old wooden boat. In "Born Naked", he tells the story of his childhood, growing up in Saskatchewan. Farley became absolutely fascinating with the animal kingdom, whom he calls "the Others". He ends up having quite a few animal pals while growing up, including a dog who spits cherry pits, a huge owl who perches on friends' heads, and a complete generation of white mice that breed out of control.
The story is also partially about Farley's father, who is the author of miscellaneous adventures, including a family trip across Canada pulling a boat-on-wheels that he built himself. (They stop briefly in Winnebago, WI, and Farley shudders to think that they may have inadvertently spawned the motorhome industry).
This is an easy read, and very entertaining. Mowat's stories are rich with detail and many of them hover around the laugh-out-loud point on the humour scale..
The story is also partially about Farley's father, who is the author of miscellaneous adventures, including a family trip across Canada pulling a boat-on-wheels that he built himself. (They stop briefly in Winnebago, WI, and Farley shudders to think that they may have inadvertently spawned the motorhome industry).
This is an easy read, and very entertaining. Mowat's stories are rich with detail and many of them hover around the laugh-out-loud point on the humour scale..
August 18, 2020
A prairie childhood turned this boy into a Naturalist, a Writer and a Canadian icon. Little boys with no worries, ultimate freedom and full on natural wonders to enjoy unsupervised, unplugged, unafraid. Kids today have no idea. Read it to your boys if they'll listen.
September 26, 2019
2019 bk 310. The Dog Who Wouldn't Be was one of my all time favorite dog books. When a copy of Born Naked came to my attention, I grabbed it. The memoir of Mowat's childhood through the 1920's and 1930's is highlighted by his growing interest in ornithology and all thinks natural. He doesn't hold back much on anything - telling the dark sides of family history, the strife in their own family, and his earliest brush with censorship. Mowat treats himself as he does one of his animal stories - providing both the high, low, and ordinary days of a boy growing up in Canada. An author who knows how to edit himself and at the same time reveal very personal emotions.
August 12, 2019
I read this book recently for the second time thinking it might be a window into the world in which my father grew up. He and Farley were only a few years apart in age and were both children during the Great Depression. Farley’s childhood was idyllic, carefree and largely unsupervised by his enlightened and eccentric parents. As an adventurous and only child he had unbelievable encounters with unusual people and with animals who became his lifelong interest and primary companions.
Some stories certainly gave me the feeling of that era in which my father said they would spend hours running up and down the road while rolling a tire. Like Farley’s father, my father’s father was gainfully employed throughout the Depression, but lived amongst families who were “dirt poor”.
In the end Farley says this was the happiest time of his life. I know my father looked back fondly on his childhood and remembered it as a happy one, as do I.
Some stories certainly gave me the feeling of that era in which my father said they would spend hours running up and down the road while rolling a tire. Like Farley’s father, my father’s father was gainfully employed throughout the Depression, but lived amongst families who were “dirt poor”.
In the end Farley says this was the happiest time of his life. I know my father looked back fondly on his childhood and remembered it as a happy one, as do I.
May 22, 2008
This book sneaks up on you. It is one volume in Canadian naturalist and writer Farley Mowat’s irregular volumes of autobiography that span subjects as varied as his dog, Mutt, The Dog Who Wouldn’t Be, to his experiences in World War II, And No Birds Sang.
Born Naked covers his first sixteen years as a budding naturalist and son to his librarian-adventurer father, Angus, and his long-suffering mother, Helen. The book is structured as a picaresque narrative that ranges freely between family history, Farley’s comic adventures with animals, and the economic and ecological crises of the 1930s. The major turning point in young Farley’s life comes in the midst of the Great Depression, when the family moved from the water-drenched province of Ontario to the parched dustbowl of Saskatoon.
At times the book feels rather unsubstantial. Why does the reader care to read bits of doggerel written by Angus Mowat or peruse a paragraph on the success of Farley’s paternal grandfather’s hardware store? But Mowat didn’t become one of Canada’s most widely read and beloved authors from lack of talent. While each of the individual episodes is small, the accumulated effect on the reader is great. At the end of the book, I suddenly found to my surprise that I was deeply moved.
In fact, the light-hearted reminiscences of boyhood antics and idyllic adventures help give the other, more profound episodes their weight. The reader is loping along, enjoying Mowat’s mischievous innocent boyhood and then is thunderstruck by cruelty of the egg-hunting exhibition to Hudson Bay, in Canada’s far north, with Frank Farley, his uncle and noted ornithologist.
The book’s ending reinforces this contrast in an artful way. When Mowat turns sixteen, his family, once again, relocates to Ontario. Before he leaves he makes a final camping trip with two of his best friends and his dog where he observes an awesome variety and abundance of birds. Looking back, he realizes that, due to the changes in the environment, it is a sight that no one will ever see again. It is a truly haunting ending to a wonderful book.
Born Naked covers his first sixteen years as a budding naturalist and son to his librarian-adventurer father, Angus, and his long-suffering mother, Helen. The book is structured as a picaresque narrative that ranges freely between family history, Farley’s comic adventures with animals, and the economic and ecological crises of the 1930s. The major turning point in young Farley’s life comes in the midst of the Great Depression, when the family moved from the water-drenched province of Ontario to the parched dustbowl of Saskatoon.
At times the book feels rather unsubstantial. Why does the reader care to read bits of doggerel written by Angus Mowat or peruse a paragraph on the success of Farley’s paternal grandfather’s hardware store? But Mowat didn’t become one of Canada’s most widely read and beloved authors from lack of talent. While each of the individual episodes is small, the accumulated effect on the reader is great. At the end of the book, I suddenly found to my surprise that I was deeply moved.
In fact, the light-hearted reminiscences of boyhood antics and idyllic adventures help give the other, more profound episodes their weight. The reader is loping along, enjoying Mowat’s mischievous innocent boyhood and then is thunderstruck by cruelty of the egg-hunting exhibition to Hudson Bay, in Canada’s far north, with Frank Farley, his uncle and noted ornithologist.
The book’s ending reinforces this contrast in an artful way. When Mowat turns sixteen, his family, once again, relocates to Ontario. Before he leaves he makes a final camping trip with two of his best friends and his dog where he observes an awesome variety and abundance of birds. Looking back, he realizes that, due to the changes in the environment, it is a sight that no one will ever see again. It is a truly haunting ending to a wonderful book.
March 7, 2013
I do not know why I have never read any Farley Mowat books before because he is quite the storyteller.
Laugh out loud at times, this one tells the story of his childhood with his somewhat wacky parents. Mowat grew up in Trenton, Ontario before moving to Windsor, Ontario (shout out to my hometown!!) and then moving to Saskatchewan.
Mowat's love of nature and animals and his natural storytelling ability gives a beautiful portrait of a coming of age in Canada in the 1930's. His dad was a beekeeper for awhile, the family owned owls and dogs (Mutt, who is the subject of The Dog who Wouldn't Be, my next read)and Farley was always bringing home some creature.
Farley's storytelling style reminded me very much of my dad and his brothers. Every story they told was true but embellished...exaggerated..not that they would ever admit it and I get the same feel from Mowat's stories - they are so good, so hilarious that even if they aren't exactly word for word true you really, really want them to be.
August 2, 2009
This is the second time I've read this little gem. Farley Mowat's books generally balance hilarious adventures while exposing horrendous abuses of the natural world. He's one of those writers who just pulls you in, makes you laugh and, if he doesn't make you cry, you'll at least wince a bunch. Born Naked takes you back to his 1930s childhood, mostly spent wandering quite purposefully with the birds (he was a licensed bird bander at age 13!) and the beasts of the Saskatchewan prairie, often at 40 below zero. He brings many of them home to his attic bedroom or his basement "museum", some for pets, some already dead to dissect much to his amazingly tolerant parent's dismay, especially when various smells would emanate through the house. It's wonderful and it's wrenching. He was a weird little kid who became a fantastic writer and one of the greatest naturalists of the last century. The Canadian government might dispute that, but that's another story (Never Cry Wolf).
September 23, 2014
The early chapters of Born Naked are about Mowat's father (Angus) and mother (Helen), and their life in Trenton, Ontario. I enjoyed his remembrances and descriptions of the people and commmunities around the Bay of Quinte in the early 1920's. They were especially interesting because my grandparents lived on the Bay, across from the Trenton airfield, and my father grew up in Bellville, where Angus Mowat was, for a time, the librarian. Farley Mowat's family cottage at Presque Isle was next to my grandmother's. So it has a lot of personal resonances. The book is a lovely light read, with the usual quiet humour, and gentle (but funny) characterizations of persons and places, that represent one historical tile of the Canadian mosaic.
March 5, 2010
I always love tales of idyllic childhoods. Who wouldn't? Not as good as Roald Dahl's "Boy," but fun, and in a similar spirit. The author became a nature writer at age sixteen, so his exploits are told well. There is a bit of what I consider animal cruelty, however, which I found disturbing- masquerading as boyish exuberance. Isn't paling the story too much, though. Also, I find it ironic that tales told of children in a "those days were so great, why isn't childhood more like that now" also include casual descriptions of coal burning ships and stoves, wanton fishing and logging, etc., which are exactly what screwed the rest of us. Hmm...
June 27, 2011
I'm becoming a Farley Mowat groupie! I read "Never Cry Wolf" several years ago and enjoyed it immensely. I don't know why I didn't look for more books written by him at the time.
Anyway, "Born Naked" covers the early years of Farley Mowat, who is a prolific Canadian naturalist. His curiosity about, and fascination with, the natural world comes through as he writes about his adventures as a young boy across the Canada of the 1930's.
Anyone who loves the outdoors, birds, or animals, will find this book a totally enjoyable read. I've got a stack of five more books by Mowat waiting on my nightstand!
Anyway, "Born Naked" covers the early years of Farley Mowat, who is a prolific Canadian naturalist. His curiosity about, and fascination with, the natural world comes through as he writes about his adventures as a young boy across the Canada of the 1930's.
Anyone who loves the outdoors, birds, or animals, will find this book a totally enjoyable read. I've got a stack of five more books by Mowat waiting on my nightstand!
May 18, 2013
I love Mowat's work and I was psyched to find this gem in perfect condition at the LSU library sale last month.
Its fascinating reading Mowat's account of his time spent with the Others, as he calls them. Even if you were not into Nature as a child, its easy to hear echoes of the childhood obsession we were all capable of. It's also a bit heartbreaking, as the natural world he describes is gone. I especially enjoyed the few journal entries he included. This tale of Mowat's childhood has inspired me to try to get my kids out into nature more. I remember loving the outdoors when I was little but I guess being shut inside our suburban house as a latchkey teen sort of killed it for me.
Its fascinating reading Mowat's account of his time spent with the Others, as he calls them. Even if you were not into Nature as a child, its easy to hear echoes of the childhood obsession we were all capable of. It's also a bit heartbreaking, as the natural world he describes is gone. I especially enjoyed the few journal entries he included. This tale of Mowat's childhood has inspired me to try to get my kids out into nature more. I remember loving the outdoors when I was little but I guess being shut inside our suburban house as a latchkey teen sort of killed it for me.
January 24, 2015
Born Naked tells a story of Mowat's childhood, so rich in detail and so sweet that we should all have had such an upbringing.
Farley wanders alone but finds friends along the way, bird, animal and human. He learns where his alliances lie as he explores the harsh Canadian Saskatchewan plains and not only survives but thrives. A truly wonderful childhood and book. I'll hope to read more of his books over time.
Farley wanders alone but finds friends along the way, bird, animal and human. He learns where his alliances lie as he explores the harsh Canadian Saskatchewan plains and not only survives but thrives. A truly wonderful childhood and book. I'll hope to read more of his books over time.
March 6, 2016
I enjoyed reading about Farley Mowat's early life in Ontario and Saskatchewan. He described how his love of the natural world and his writing about it developed through his childhood. There are the same types of characters, human and otherwise that he wrote about in his books, which also passed through Farley's real life. These made for an enjoyable read, and showed the beginnings of the lifelong journey Farley would take in his studies and relationships with "The Others".
March 28, 2007
This is a good bedtime book, interesting but not terrifically intellectual, and generally leaves a pleasant but not sticky-sweet state of mind.
This is the autobiography of Farley Mowat, from recounts of his conception in a canoe (HOW?!) to moving away from the plains he'd come to love. It contains very boyish adventures and is enthusiastically pro-get-out-and-play!
This is the autobiography of Farley Mowat, from recounts of his conception in a canoe (HOW?!) to moving away from the plains he'd come to love. It contains very boyish adventures and is enthusiastically pro-get-out-and-play!
November 20, 2007
I've not read any Farley Mowat, but found his memoir charming. He grew up in Canada -- Ontario, then Saskatchewan -- where he thrived in the wild. His parents seem quite enlightened and eccentric (Dad was a librarian); their child is guileless and funny. Farly Mowat would like Oliver Sachs, whose memoir, Uncle Tungsten, came to mind as I read this.
May 24, 2010
An entertaining account by Farley Mowat of his first 12 years growing up free and wild in cities in Ontario and in the wilds of Saskatchewan. His was an unusual, colorful and adventurous family (and his father was a librarian!) that allowed him the freedom to discover nature that would be his life-long passion.
June 11, 2012
He had a childhood in the Canadian outdoors that provided countless adventures with animals, nature, below zero weather and unusual people. This hardy lifestyle was a fertile ground for planting the seeds of the many, many books he went on to write later in life. It is too bad that few children in America spend their childhood as close to nature as the young Farley Mowat.
August 7, 2014
I really loved Never Cry Wolf, and this autobiography of the author just happened to be sitting on my shelf. It was a good mellow read, funny at times but not terribly striking or memorable. The anecdote about dressing up like a maid for one of the parties his parents hosted was my favorite bit. Overall a pleasant read.
May 23, 2008
Some of the stories in this book will be familiar to fans of Farley Mowat. His dog Mutt, his owl Wol, and other characters make appearances. But there is also lots of interesting episodes from his early life in Ontario and Saskatchewan.
December 7, 2010
I loved this book. Autobiographical, setting late 1920s through late 1930's. This book is well-written, descriptive without being wordy, funny, heartwarming, interesting, learned. I loved it.
August 1, 2011
Delightful fast read with humorous stories about the author's youth. I liked "Never Cry Wolf" when I read it many years ago and I just happened upon this early biography. Mowat has such a knack for describing the time and place that I feel as if I am really there.
May 20, 2015
Wow, what a writer! Mowat's childhood adventures were actually similar to my own in the love for nature, animals, the outdoors. I regret that children these days are not allowed the freedom to explore we were given. Are things really that much more dangerous?
October 19, 2016
"Mutt enjoyed traveling by car, but he was an unquiet passenger. He suffered from the delusion, common to dogs and small boys, that when he was looking out the right-hand side, he was probably missing something far more interesting on the left-hand side."
November 10, 2017
I read Never Cry Wolf and Owls in the Family by this author years ago and enjoyed them immensely. This book describes his childhood years, delightfully describing his experiences exploring nature and developing his lifelong dedication to the marvels of wildlife.
August 17, 2007
Really really good. If you haven't read his books, do. They are amazing and this tells the stories he didn't tell
Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews