Duchess

by Chester Aaron

After arriving on his uncle's ranch in California, a troubled fifteen-year-old boy from New York trains his own sheepdog, and finds that his experiences on the ranch help him to deal with himself, his family, and other people.

182 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1982

About the author

Chester Aaron was a prolific American author for both children and adults, and wrote novels, stories, and memoirs. Born in 1923 in the coal-mining town of Butler, Pennsylvania, he was educated at Butler Senior High School, UCLA, UC Berkeley, and San Francisco State University. He saw combat in World War II, and was with the troops that liberated Dachau. Following publication of his first novel in 1967, he was an x-ray technician at Alta Bates Hospital in Berkeley, CA. He joined the faculty at Saint Mary’s College, retiring as a full professor in 1997. For twenty-five years he cultivated ninety varieties of exotic garlic on his farm in Sonoma County, becoming a world-renowned expert, and publishing a number of books on the subject. He died in 2019.

Reviews

[Books Kids Like · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful border collie transforms the life of a troubled boy. Marty, in trouble many times before, takes the blame for killing a police dog. He is sent to live on his uncle’s sheep ranch. The night of his arrival, Marty tries to escape. He stumbles and hurts himself in the darkness. Princess, Uncle Lee’s dog, finds him, but not before Marty sees another dog, a German shepherd. Later, he finds the starving dog in the feed shed. Uncle Lee reluctantly agrees to let her stay. The dog soon shows an unusual aptitude for herding sheep, and Uncle Lee teaches Marty how to train her. The tough shell Marty has built around himself starts to break apart. He learns the value of hard work and the joy that comes from loving a dog. Duchess takes to the training so naturally that Uncle Lee enters the team in the local sheep trials. Marty hopes Duchess will be ready for the Grand National.
©2024 Kathy Maxwell at https://bookskidslike.com