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Bless The Beasts & Children
"Send Us a Boy -- We'll Send You a Cowboy!" is the slogan of the Box Canyon Boys Camp. But for the nail biters, thumb suckers, and teeth grinders -- the cast-away offspring of parents who are busy travelling, being divorced, remarrying, and garnering fortunes -- it's just another place to face rejection. Until Cotton.
Cotton pulls them together. In a hot-wired pickup, he leads "the Bedwetters" on a fantastic mission to save a heard of buffalo -- and in the process, to save themselves. But as the raw red Arizona sun rises, they will discover the cost of their one grand moment of glory
Paperback
First published January 1, 1970
About the author
Glendon Swarthout
51 books102 followersGlendon Fred Swarthout was an American writer. Some of his best known novels were made into films of the same title, Where the Boys Are, The Shootist and They Came To Cordura.
Also wrote under Glendon Fred Swarthout. Twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in Fiction.
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glendon_...
Also wrote under Glendon Fred Swarthout. Twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in Fiction.
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glendon_...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 252 reviews
February 20, 2026
Review on English, followed by the Bulgarian one. Ревюто на английски е първо, следва това на български.
When my child grows up, around his 13th birthday, this is the book I will give him to read...
And Glendon Swarthout have find the sicret like Bulgarian autors brothers Mormarevi did - every boy is actualy a man, a poet or a sailor to be!
This is relatively short story, hidden in a little brown book, just like a "small literature sparrow". But it is surprisingly rich, with a whole Univerce inside it, built by it's justice and humanity in a trully american way of it. 🙋♂️🛻 🏔🦬
I did saw the movie from 1971 and I can tell that I am not impressed.
—————————————————————————
Когато детето ми навърши 13 години, това ще е книгата, която ще му дам да прочете...
И както вече са ни разкрили нашите братя Мормареви и Глендън Суортаут - всяко момче, всъщност е бъдещ мъж, поет или моряк!
Кратка история, свряна в опърпано соц книжле, досущ подобно на "дребничко литературно врабче". Изненадващо, но е побрала в себе си вселена, изградена от правда и човечност, по един много присъщ за американците начин. 🙋♂️🛻 🏔🦬
Корицата на нашето издание е чудесна!
Цитат:
"Досетиха се, че времето може би се ражда другаде, може да прави каквото си иска с момчетата и цели народи на други места, но тук, на високото, на това самотно плато то остаряваше, оглупяваше и губеше сили."
P.S. Това е ревю под номер 1000 за мен в Goodreads. Не мога да си представя по-значима за мен творба, с която да ознаменувам този етап от пътешествието си чудно из света необятен на книгите!
Изгледах донякъде и филм, излязъл през далечната 1971 година - не ме впечатли, за съжаление.
When my child grows up, around his 13th birthday, this is the book I will give him to read...
And Glendon Swarthout have find the sicret like Bulgarian autors brothers Mormarevi did - every boy is actualy a man, a poet or a sailor to be!
This is relatively short story, hidden in a little brown book, just like a "small literature sparrow". But it is surprisingly rich, with a whole Univerce inside it, built by it's justice and humanity in a trully american way of it. 🙋♂️🛻 🏔🦬
I did saw the movie from 1971 and I can tell that I am not impressed.
—————————————————————————
Когато детето ми навърши 13 години, това ще е книгата, която ще му дам да прочете...
И както вече са ни разкрили нашите братя Мормареви и Глендън Суортаут - всяко момче, всъщност е бъдещ мъж, поет или моряк!
Кратка история, свряна в опърпано соц книжле, досущ подобно на "дребничко литературно врабче". Изненадващо, но е побрала в себе си вселена, изградена от правда и човечност, по един много присъщ за американците начин. 🙋♂️🛻 🏔🦬
Корицата на нашето издание е чудесна!
Цитат:
"Досетиха се, че времето може би се ражда другаде, може да прави каквото си иска с момчетата и цели народи на други места, но тук, на високото, на това самотно плато то остаряваше, оглупяваше и губеше сили."
P.S. Това е ревю под номер 1000 за мен в Goodreads. Не мога да си представя по-значима за мен творба, с която да ознаменувам този етап от пътешествието си чудно из света необятен на книгите!
Изгледах донякъде и филм, излязъл през далечната 1971 година - не ме впечатли, за съжаление.
May 26, 2009
There is some gay-ish stuff that happens in this book, and it made everyone in my seventh grade class giggle about it. The copy I was given to read from the school had a penis drawn on the page where the gay stuff happens, and then some more penises on the inside covers. I don't remember much else about the book, except that I hated reading it but yet somehow survived yet another painful experience of literature in the hands of teachers without any desire to ever read again sapped from me.
April 30, 2020
Years back I was collecting classics, especially the lesser known ones, and that is how I discovered 'Bless the Beasts and Children' by Glendon Swarthout. I have wanted to read it for a long time, but somehow never got around to it. Recently, when one of my friends got the French translation of the book by the publisher Gallmeister, I was quite excited, because I didn't know anyone else who had this book or who had read it, and I was surprised that there was a new French translation. We talked about this book and decided to do a readalong.
Six boys ranging in age from twelve to sixteen, are there is a summer camp. They are here, because some of their parents feel that they are problematic children and they feel that this camp will help them. In the case of others, the parents have problems themselves and want their children out of their way. In the camp, children align naturally together as groups, and these six boys are left out because they are misfits. They get together as a group, but they struggle in most of the activities in the camp, coming last in most competitions. One day when their counsellor takes them out forward a drive, these six boys see something. And that experience leaves a profound impact in their heart. And they decide to do something about it. And what happens next is amazing. They take up an impossible project and we start cheering for them. Whether they succeed or not, you'll know in the last page of the book.
I loved 'Bless the Beasts and Children'. The first half was a bit slow-paced as we get to know about the six main characters, and how they are struggling at camp, and we learn their backstories. We also wonder why they are doing something strange, and we want to know what is happening. When the surprise is revealed halfway through the book, the story kicks to another gear and the pages start flying. I loved all the six characters, especially, John Cotton, who is like their leader, and William Lally, the youngest member of the group who is twelve years old (or Lally 2, as he is called, because his elder brother, who is also part of the six, is Lally 1). The ending of the story is magnificent, gives goosebumps, but is also heartbreaking.
What about the 'beasts' in the title? Yes, of course, there are beasts in the story. Each of them is six feet tall, nine feet long and weighs more than 2000 pounds. One description in the book goes like this :
"...and suddenly, with a rumble and roar, something the size of a dinosaur came at them and a hot breath slapped their faces and they tumbled backward..."
So what exactly are these beasts? What do they have to do with the story? What is the relationship between them and our six characters? Why are our six getting into trouble and trying to poke the bear, or rather poke the beast here? Well, I can't tell you more. It will take away the pleasure of the book, if you decide to read it. One thing I'll say is this. This book depicts how big things, magnificent things can be achieved even by people who are regarded as misfits, if they keep at it and defy their detractors and fight against obstacles. The second thing I'll say is this. This book also depicts the vast amount of harm humans have done to wildlife and the environment. It is hard to believe that as a group, humans are capable of so much cruelty, and it is harder to believe that normal people are part of this. It makes us think and it makes us sad.
I will leave you with some of my favourite lines from the book.
"In that place the wind prevailed. There was always sound. The throat of the canyon was hoarse with wind. It heaved through pines and passed and was collected by the cliffs. There was a phenomenon of pines in such a place. When wind died in a box canyon and in its wake the air was still and taut, the trees were not. The passing trembled in them, and a sough of loss. They grieved. They seemed to mourn a memory of wind."
"It was that last, impotent hour between darkness and dawn, when men buy truth and sell illusions."
Have you read 'Bless the Beasts and Children'? What do you think about it?
Six boys ranging in age from twelve to sixteen, are there is a summer camp. They are here, because some of their parents feel that they are problematic children and they feel that this camp will help them. In the case of others, the parents have problems themselves and want their children out of their way. In the camp, children align naturally together as groups, and these six boys are left out because they are misfits. They get together as a group, but they struggle in most of the activities in the camp, coming last in most competitions. One day when their counsellor takes them out forward a drive, these six boys see something. And that experience leaves a profound impact in their heart. And they decide to do something about it. And what happens next is amazing. They take up an impossible project and we start cheering for them. Whether they succeed or not, you'll know in the last page of the book.
I loved 'Bless the Beasts and Children'. The first half was a bit slow-paced as we get to know about the six main characters, and how they are struggling at camp, and we learn their backstories. We also wonder why they are doing something strange, and we want to know what is happening. When the surprise is revealed halfway through the book, the story kicks to another gear and the pages start flying. I loved all the six characters, especially, John Cotton, who is like their leader, and William Lally, the youngest member of the group who is twelve years old (or Lally 2, as he is called, because his elder brother, who is also part of the six, is Lally 1). The ending of the story is magnificent, gives goosebumps, but is also heartbreaking.
What about the 'beasts' in the title? Yes, of course, there are beasts in the story. Each of them is six feet tall, nine feet long and weighs more than 2000 pounds. One description in the book goes like this :
"...and suddenly, with a rumble and roar, something the size of a dinosaur came at them and a hot breath slapped their faces and they tumbled backward..."
So what exactly are these beasts? What do they have to do with the story? What is the relationship between them and our six characters? Why are our six getting into trouble and trying to poke the bear, or rather poke the beast here? Well, I can't tell you more. It will take away the pleasure of the book, if you decide to read it. One thing I'll say is this. This book depicts how big things, magnificent things can be achieved even by people who are regarded as misfits, if they keep at it and defy their detractors and fight against obstacles. The second thing I'll say is this. This book also depicts the vast amount of harm humans have done to wildlife and the environment. It is hard to believe that as a group, humans are capable of so much cruelty, and it is harder to believe that normal people are part of this. It makes us think and it makes us sad.
I will leave you with some of my favourite lines from the book.
"In that place the wind prevailed. There was always sound. The throat of the canyon was hoarse with wind. It heaved through pines and passed and was collected by the cliffs. There was a phenomenon of pines in such a place. When wind died in a box canyon and in its wake the air was still and taut, the trees were not. The passing trembled in them, and a sough of loss. They grieved. They seemed to mourn a memory of wind."
"It was that last, impotent hour between darkness and dawn, when men buy truth and sell illusions."
Have you read 'Bless the Beasts and Children'? What do you think about it?
Read
February 5, 2021My daughter recently shared with me a news story about a troop of baboons where all the alpha males died, and the non-alpha males had to take over. The result was that the baboons were all nicer to each other, and everyone was happier.
Box Canyon boys camp is sort of like a school for alpha males. Boys are trained to be strong, aggressive, physically competent. But what would happen if the losers got a chance to show their stuff? In most cases, probably nothing, as they have a tendency to fall apart under pressure. But in this story they have a leader named Cotton who encourages them to stick together, break the rules, follow their heart. The boys steal a truck and sneak off in the dead of night to set free the buffalo who are going to be slaughtered in the morning. Of course they succeed. At a price.
Watching the boys rise to the challenge was a pleasure, if a somewhat predictable one. A surprising pleasure was the author's occasional flights of lyricism. His descriptions of the land, and of the buffalo huffing and stomping and taking hay from the boys' hands, sparkle with a glory-of-Eden beauty. I was moved by this description of Cotton trying to move a stuck truck: "He was seized. He had fine frenzies. His motor control stuck, he scattershot his aggression at gods too indifferent to defeat, and his refusal to face the hard facts of night and day and weak and strong and life and death and gravity bordered on the psychotic. He was redheaded."
Mr Swarthout writes about all his losers like he really cares about them. Because he does. And because he does, we can, too, although they aren't really all that easy to love. The baboon analogy may not be all that apt because, although these boys are at the bottom of the pecking order, they are not a kinder, gentler breed. They are mostly self-absorbed in their respective neuroses (for example, clinging to a pillow, and sleeping underneath the bed), and lash out at each other as often as at their actual oppressors (for example, killing the cabin-mates' pet animals). They irritate. But in the end, because they have known rejection, they find in themselves compassion for the buffalo, and under Cotton's leadership they find the strength to do something about it.
One of the greatest things about this book is that Mr Swarthout, with the power of his pen, was able to accomplish permanently what the boys set out to do. His story awoke a public outcry about the shooting of the captive buffalo, and the practice was discontinued.
Box Canyon boys camp is sort of like a school for alpha males. Boys are trained to be strong, aggressive, physically competent. But what would happen if the losers got a chance to show their stuff? In most cases, probably nothing, as they have a tendency to fall apart under pressure. But in this story they have a leader named Cotton who encourages them to stick together, break the rules, follow their heart. The boys steal a truck and sneak off in the dead of night to set free the buffalo who are going to be slaughtered in the morning. Of course they succeed. At a price.
Watching the boys rise to the challenge was a pleasure, if a somewhat predictable one. A surprising pleasure was the author's occasional flights of lyricism. His descriptions of the land, and of the buffalo huffing and stomping and taking hay from the boys' hands, sparkle with a glory-of-Eden beauty. I was moved by this description of Cotton trying to move a stuck truck: "He was seized. He had fine frenzies. His motor control stuck, he scattershot his aggression at gods too indifferent to defeat, and his refusal to face the hard facts of night and day and weak and strong and life and death and gravity bordered on the psychotic. He was redheaded."
Mr Swarthout writes about all his losers like he really cares about them. Because he does. And because he does, we can, too, although they aren't really all that easy to love. The baboon analogy may not be all that apt because, although these boys are at the bottom of the pecking order, they are not a kinder, gentler breed. They are mostly self-absorbed in their respective neuroses (for example, clinging to a pillow, and sleeping underneath the bed), and lash out at each other as often as at their actual oppressors (for example, killing the cabin-mates' pet animals). They irritate. But in the end, because they have known rejection, they find in themselves compassion for the buffalo, and under Cotton's leadership they find the strength to do something about it.
One of the greatest things about this book is that Mr Swarthout, with the power of his pen, was able to accomplish permanently what the boys set out to do. His story awoke a public outcry about the shooting of the captive buffalo, and the practice was discontinued.
May 30, 2024
The book Bless the Beasts and Children tells the story of a group of misfit teens who find their way to adulthood and selflessness. These boys face a traumatic event and try to stop the same event from happening again. What intrigued me about this book was its portrayal of a child's necessary emotional and mental growth when changing into an adult. With their unique backgrounds and struggles, the characters felt like people I could know. However, I must admit that there were times when the book's pace slowed, and I longed for more excitement.
July 15, 2025
O carte impresionantă, care are ca temă principală trecerea de la adolescență la maturitate prin simpla poveste a șase tineri împiedicați, dar empatici și dornici de afirmare într-o lume plină de răutate și etichetări.
Voința fiecăruia de a-și depăși condiția dată de proveniența familială, de a lupta pentru o faptă mai bună -salvarea unor animale, din start condamnate-dorința de a-și câștiga libertatea mult râvnită și sacrificiile pe care le fac în tabăra Box Canyon , marchează fiecare cititor fiind de mare actualitate.
Voința fiecăruia de a-și depăși condiția dată de proveniența familială, de a lupta pentru o faptă mai bună -salvarea unor animale, din start condamnate-dorința de a-și câștiga libertatea mult râvnită și sacrificiile pe care le fac în tabăra Box Canyon , marchează fiecare cititor fiind de mare actualitate.
July 12, 2014
I've read this book many times over the years, and all the rest of Glendon Swarthout's works. I recommend them heartily. The writing is excellent, the characters are alive, and the stories are poignant. But beware, because Swarthout's works will make your heart hurt, make your soul bleed. It's painful, but it's the good kind of painful.
January 27, 2015
Why haven't I ever read this book before? I had heard of it, but didn't realize that it was such a good and thought provoking book. This probably is a book that should be read by more of us.
The story centers around a group of emotionally disturbed boys away at a summer camp in the 1960s near Prescott, Arizona, where it is promised that if you "send us a boy - we'll send you a cowboy." Now take that statement along with these quirky and emotionally damaged boys whose wealthy parents have dumped them at this camp and you can see that there is a story to tell. Now, add in a buffalo hunt where the hunters are presented the buffalo right up close and personal within a very easy shot, and the story gets even more thought provoking.
The book speaks on many social issues of the time, as it was written during the Vietnam War. One that struck me was the author's writing about the buffalo killings that were actually happening. The 1960s were the beginning of the environmental and animal rights movements and his story created an outcry. The fact that the boys were so distraught over the killing of the buffalo tied into the struggle in their own lives. As you read this book you will see the transformation of these boys during their mission.
The story centers around a group of emotionally disturbed boys away at a summer camp in the 1960s near Prescott, Arizona, where it is promised that if you "send us a boy - we'll send you a cowboy." Now take that statement along with these quirky and emotionally damaged boys whose wealthy parents have dumped them at this camp and you can see that there is a story to tell. Now, add in a buffalo hunt where the hunters are presented the buffalo right up close and personal within a very easy shot, and the story gets even more thought provoking.
The book speaks on many social issues of the time, as it was written during the Vietnam War. One that struck me was the author's writing about the buffalo killings that were actually happening. The 1960s were the beginning of the environmental and animal rights movements and his story created an outcry. The fact that the boys were so distraught over the killing of the buffalo tied into the struggle in their own lives. As you read this book you will see the transformation of these boys during their mission.
March 26, 2014
Bless the Beasts & Children became far and away Glendon Swarthout's biggest bestseller, never out-of-print from the day it was published in 1970, and one of the first animal rights stories ever written. The novel was a selection of the Literary Guild, the Doubleday Book Club, as well as a Reader's Digest Condensed Book. It has been published in foreign languages all over the world, even in Romania, 25 years later! Beasts has sold over 3 million paperbacks in the United States alone, and this latest Pocket Books 25th anniversary edition with a special Introduction by Miles Swarthout (me), continues to be used in high school and college literature classes across the country.
The novel was nominated by Doubleday as its Pulitzer Prize candidate in Fiction in 1970. The film version by Stanley Kramer in 1972 was not nearly as successful, but did contain some famous film theme music and can still be seen on television reruns.
Based upon his only son's adventures in high school and as a summer camper and counselor at a private boys' ranch camp in Prescott, Arizona, Bless the Beasts & Children tells a tragicomic tale of a group of disturbed teenaged boys from over-privileged families who are "warehoused" by the inattentive parents at a summer session at an Arizona boys camp in hopes that their lazy, urban kids will be toughened-up in this camp's rigorous cowboy program. While on a field trip with the militaristic counselor, Wheaties, the boys seen an annual buffalo "hunt" sponsored by the Arizona Fish and Game, in which their counselor has drawn a permit. Sickened by the slaughter of these great beasts while trapped in big pens by these "sportsmen,"
the youths resolve to save the next day's allotment. Riding from their camp that night on their horses, the boys steal a pickup truck in Prescott and head on up to Flagstaff on their mission-of-mercy. Complications arise, but these problem boys band together and manage to free these national symbols, but only after strenuous effort and at great cost.
Glendon Swarthout's more positive response To William Golding's famous novel, Lord of the Flies, and Golding's thesis that all men are basically beastial, stands as one of the first contemporary bestsellers to take up the cause of animal rights.
It remains to this day one of the few controversial novels which ever resulted in some political change and social good -- The Arizona legislature mandated changing the regulation of their annual buffalo hunt to more humane practices due to the student and animal rights activists protests resulting from this film and novel. Glendon's theme that even a group of misfit youths, if banded together in common cause, were capable of
a great, heroic deed, still resonates strongly with American teenagers and their teachers, and this classic novel is still mandatory reading in many English literature classes across
the country today.
More information about the writing Swarthouts and descriptions of all their adult novels and YA novellas, plus
movie trailers of the 9 films made from their stories as well as screenplays (original and adaptations), are posted on their literary website -- www.glendonswarthout.com
Its Book Reviews were sensational --
"Bless the Beasts & Children is alternately hilarious and scalding, pathetic and poignant. But it is never maudlin; its heroes' buffoonery never overshadows the cruelty that has shaped their lives. They, like the buffalo they set out to free, come face to face with their own freedom. But the price, the price...."
Jim Hampton, the National Observer
"This is Mr. Swarthout's best novel since They Came To Cordura, an exciting mission-pursuit story with an engrossing cast of characters." Publisher's Weekly
"Swarthout's thematic concerns--the American Dream, the subduing of a continent and its inhabitants, sacrifice and brotherly love--are integral to the narrative. 'Powerful' is a tired word to use on a novel, but how else is there to describe a book that leaves you limp? The best I could do after staring at the last page for several minutes was a respectful 'wow'."
Catherine Petroski, the Austin, Texas Statesman
"It's a novel that no reader, once hooked, can put down. It is both tragically sad and funny, both nostalgic and frighteningly contemporary. And it tells us something about our times that too many are trying to overlook. You shouldn't miss this one."
Nard Jones, Seattle-Post Intelligencer
"Well-written, almost poetically sparse, author Swarthout's 9th book adds to his prestige the acclaim that he handles the characters of runaway kids every bit as easily as he maneuvered rebellious soldiers in They Came To Cordura.
the Los Angeles Times Calendar
"Glendon Swarthout's latest work is a superb example of the kind of novel that evolves when a writer's craft is equal to the grandeur of his theme. Bless the Beasts & Children is a compassionate book, a true book, a book of the heart; it is also a compelling drama that grabs you with a grip that can't be pried loose...With this novel, Glendon Swarthout has added something fine and important to the literature of our age."
Novelist Brian Garfield, the Saturday Review of Literature
"Bless the Beasts & Children is a beautiful novel. It is tightly written, with a singleness of purpose that sets up a tension relived only when the final page is finished. Even then the boys, their motivation, and the culmination of their actions will long remain with the reader--to haunt him and to remind him how traumatic reaching for adulthood really is."
Shirley Sievers, South Bend, Indiana Tribune
"This is one of the rare books whose impact will far exceed its size. A brief synopsis of the plot cannot prepare the reader for the emotional involvement he will encounter...Truly an excellent novel."
Nancy Chalfant, Sunday News & Leader, Springfield, Missouri
"Make no mistake--this book, despite its placid surface story, is really a tale of horror and cruelty, of honor and compassion, of savagery and serenity. In short, it is a brilliant statement of the human condition...a book which uses litotes--the sort of understatement which only a gifted novelist can use effectively-- to tell us things about ourselves which we may not wish to know."
Edwin McDowell, the Arizona Republic
"The initial pages of Bless the Beasts & Children are as dramatic and absorbing as anything this reviewer has read in a long, long time and the intensity of mood is sustained and heightened throughout the novel. Like all good fiction Bless the Beasts can be read on more than one level. It is at a minimum, a rattling good action story, which is quite an accomplishment for a novel which has for its main characters six adolescent boys at a summer camp. On a deeper level it is a record of the triumph of the human spirit over the vulgarity, sham, and cruelty of our time."
Elliott R. Horton Morgantown West Virginia Dominion Post
"The completion of their mission is heroic in the grand Swarthout manner--and also in his manner, the ending leaves a king-size lump in the reader's throat over the irony that bludgeons idealistic innocence."
Pat Hanna, Rocky Mountain News, Denver
"Mr. Swarthout has written a parable of our time which on another level is a splendid and very funny adventure story. He says that in spite of all, the human spirit will prevail...Bless the Beasts & Children is a sort of Lord of the Flies with hope. It will make your day a little better and you won't soon forget it."
L.T. Hammond, Jr., Asheboro, North Carolina Courier Tribune
"Swarthout's tale is so funny, and heartbreaking, that the ugly vulgarity of our times which has thrown these beasts and children together is almost forgotten. The passage from adolescence to maturity has been a favorite theme for such writers as Salinger, Conroy, James Kirkwood, and William Bradford. But none of them has written of it with such warmth and joy and understanding. You will not soon forget the Bedwetters or the magnificent beasts--the buffalo--which share their adventure." Robert Armstrong, Minneapolis Tribune
"Bless the Beasts & Children might have been self-conscious. Instead it is a wonderful book in which a provocative subject is handled with wit and compassion."
Thelma Altshuler, Miami Herald
"A powerful, absorbing, tenderly written novel, a knowing comment on today's world, Bless the Beasts & Children is an unforgettable experience."
Louise Rogers, Greenville, Mississippi Delta Democrat-Times
"Glendon Swarthout has written a strangely moving little story of six boys who set out on a mission of violence to avenge what they felt was unbearable cruelty....The author interrupts the swift and violent record of the boys' deeds to insert vignettes of their lives. The result is strangely compelling."
Fannie Butcher, Chicago Tribune
"When you read the book be prepared to laugh and cry. I cried more than I laughed. This outstanding novel will surely find a place on library shelves of school libraries as well as those of all who are concerned with the young people who become dropouts, runaways and lost segments of society. In addition, it is fast-moving and easy to read. The students will line up to read it."
Sioux Falls, Texas Argus-Leader
"This is Swarthout at his finest. He has told a tale about children without the triteness or cuteness that usually accompanies tales about children. These are real kids; products of an affluent American culture that furnishes children transistor radios and color televisions to ward off loneliness. It is a compactly told story, dreadful in its implications, yet filled with tender, bittersweet moments as six lonely little kids struggle to find themselves and, at the same time, to affirm, ritualistically, the goodness of God."
Frederic Kelly, New Haven, Connecticut Register
The novel was nominated by Doubleday as its Pulitzer Prize candidate in Fiction in 1970. The film version by Stanley Kramer in 1972 was not nearly as successful, but did contain some famous film theme music and can still be seen on television reruns.
Based upon his only son's adventures in high school and as a summer camper and counselor at a private boys' ranch camp in Prescott, Arizona, Bless the Beasts & Children tells a tragicomic tale of a group of disturbed teenaged boys from over-privileged families who are "warehoused" by the inattentive parents at a summer session at an Arizona boys camp in hopes that their lazy, urban kids will be toughened-up in this camp's rigorous cowboy program. While on a field trip with the militaristic counselor, Wheaties, the boys seen an annual buffalo "hunt" sponsored by the Arizona Fish and Game, in which their counselor has drawn a permit. Sickened by the slaughter of these great beasts while trapped in big pens by these "sportsmen,"
the youths resolve to save the next day's allotment. Riding from their camp that night on their horses, the boys steal a pickup truck in Prescott and head on up to Flagstaff on their mission-of-mercy. Complications arise, but these problem boys band together and manage to free these national symbols, but only after strenuous effort and at great cost.
Glendon Swarthout's more positive response To William Golding's famous novel, Lord of the Flies, and Golding's thesis that all men are basically beastial, stands as one of the first contemporary bestsellers to take up the cause of animal rights.
It remains to this day one of the few controversial novels which ever resulted in some political change and social good -- The Arizona legislature mandated changing the regulation of their annual buffalo hunt to more humane practices due to the student and animal rights activists protests resulting from this film and novel. Glendon's theme that even a group of misfit youths, if banded together in common cause, were capable of
a great, heroic deed, still resonates strongly with American teenagers and their teachers, and this classic novel is still mandatory reading in many English literature classes across
the country today.
More information about the writing Swarthouts and descriptions of all their adult novels and YA novellas, plus
movie trailers of the 9 films made from their stories as well as screenplays (original and adaptations), are posted on their literary website -- www.glendonswarthout.com
Its Book Reviews were sensational --
"Bless the Beasts & Children is alternately hilarious and scalding, pathetic and poignant. But it is never maudlin; its heroes' buffoonery never overshadows the cruelty that has shaped their lives. They, like the buffalo they set out to free, come face to face with their own freedom. But the price, the price...."
Jim Hampton, the National Observer
"This is Mr. Swarthout's best novel since They Came To Cordura, an exciting mission-pursuit story with an engrossing cast of characters." Publisher's Weekly
"Swarthout's thematic concerns--the American Dream, the subduing of a continent and its inhabitants, sacrifice and brotherly love--are integral to the narrative. 'Powerful' is a tired word to use on a novel, but how else is there to describe a book that leaves you limp? The best I could do after staring at the last page for several minutes was a respectful 'wow'."
Catherine Petroski, the Austin, Texas Statesman
"It's a novel that no reader, once hooked, can put down. It is both tragically sad and funny, both nostalgic and frighteningly contemporary. And it tells us something about our times that too many are trying to overlook. You shouldn't miss this one."
Nard Jones, Seattle-Post Intelligencer
"Well-written, almost poetically sparse, author Swarthout's 9th book adds to his prestige the acclaim that he handles the characters of runaway kids every bit as easily as he maneuvered rebellious soldiers in They Came To Cordura.
the Los Angeles Times Calendar
"Glendon Swarthout's latest work is a superb example of the kind of novel that evolves when a writer's craft is equal to the grandeur of his theme. Bless the Beasts & Children is a compassionate book, a true book, a book of the heart; it is also a compelling drama that grabs you with a grip that can't be pried loose...With this novel, Glendon Swarthout has added something fine and important to the literature of our age."
Novelist Brian Garfield, the Saturday Review of Literature
"Bless the Beasts & Children is a beautiful novel. It is tightly written, with a singleness of purpose that sets up a tension relived only when the final page is finished. Even then the boys, their motivation, and the culmination of their actions will long remain with the reader--to haunt him and to remind him how traumatic reaching for adulthood really is."
Shirley Sievers, South Bend, Indiana Tribune
"This is one of the rare books whose impact will far exceed its size. A brief synopsis of the plot cannot prepare the reader for the emotional involvement he will encounter...Truly an excellent novel."
Nancy Chalfant, Sunday News & Leader, Springfield, Missouri
"Make no mistake--this book, despite its placid surface story, is really a tale of horror and cruelty, of honor and compassion, of savagery and serenity. In short, it is a brilliant statement of the human condition...a book which uses litotes--the sort of understatement which only a gifted novelist can use effectively-- to tell us things about ourselves which we may not wish to know."
Edwin McDowell, the Arizona Republic
"The initial pages of Bless the Beasts & Children are as dramatic and absorbing as anything this reviewer has read in a long, long time and the intensity of mood is sustained and heightened throughout the novel. Like all good fiction Bless the Beasts can be read on more than one level. It is at a minimum, a rattling good action story, which is quite an accomplishment for a novel which has for its main characters six adolescent boys at a summer camp. On a deeper level it is a record of the triumph of the human spirit over the vulgarity, sham, and cruelty of our time."
Elliott R. Horton Morgantown West Virginia Dominion Post
"The completion of their mission is heroic in the grand Swarthout manner--and also in his manner, the ending leaves a king-size lump in the reader's throat over the irony that bludgeons idealistic innocence."
Pat Hanna, Rocky Mountain News, Denver
"Mr. Swarthout has written a parable of our time which on another level is a splendid and very funny adventure story. He says that in spite of all, the human spirit will prevail...Bless the Beasts & Children is a sort of Lord of the Flies with hope. It will make your day a little better and you won't soon forget it."
L.T. Hammond, Jr., Asheboro, North Carolina Courier Tribune
"Swarthout's tale is so funny, and heartbreaking, that the ugly vulgarity of our times which has thrown these beasts and children together is almost forgotten. The passage from adolescence to maturity has been a favorite theme for such writers as Salinger, Conroy, James Kirkwood, and William Bradford. But none of them has written of it with such warmth and joy and understanding. You will not soon forget the Bedwetters or the magnificent beasts--the buffalo--which share their adventure." Robert Armstrong, Minneapolis Tribune
"Bless the Beasts & Children might have been self-conscious. Instead it is a wonderful book in which a provocative subject is handled with wit and compassion."
Thelma Altshuler, Miami Herald
"A powerful, absorbing, tenderly written novel, a knowing comment on today's world, Bless the Beasts & Children is an unforgettable experience."
Louise Rogers, Greenville, Mississippi Delta Democrat-Times
"Glendon Swarthout has written a strangely moving little story of six boys who set out on a mission of violence to avenge what they felt was unbearable cruelty....The author interrupts the swift and violent record of the boys' deeds to insert vignettes of their lives. The result is strangely compelling."
Fannie Butcher, Chicago Tribune
"When you read the book be prepared to laugh and cry. I cried more than I laughed. This outstanding novel will surely find a place on library shelves of school libraries as well as those of all who are concerned with the young people who become dropouts, runaways and lost segments of society. In addition, it is fast-moving and easy to read. The students will line up to read it."
Sioux Falls, Texas Argus-Leader
"This is Swarthout at his finest. He has told a tale about children without the triteness or cuteness that usually accompanies tales about children. These are real kids; products of an affluent American culture that furnishes children transistor radios and color televisions to ward off loneliness. It is a compactly told story, dreadful in its implications, yet filled with tender, bittersweet moments as six lonely little kids struggle to find themselves and, at the same time, to affirm, ritualistically, the goodness of God."
Frederic Kelly, New Haven, Connecticut Register
August 20, 2010
Like many teachers, I have taught "Bless the Beasts" to full classes, mostly sophomores. Now I recommend it to individual juniors and seniors. It is a complicated plot for a young reader with individual flashbacks of each character. Consequently, Swarthout's text moves in and out of time and place and serves to analyze the psychological problems that surface in fearful and loving expressions. The audio my be the answer to accessing this style by teen readers, but then they would not be reading, would they? Possibly a read with the tape, but even then the time involved might be too long. I hope that the compelling story of a group of "rejects" at a cowboy camp unifying to rescue condemned bison is heroic enough to keep any reader captivated. How much I use audio this year will depend on response by students. Last year, a foreign exchange student combined her American Lit readings with audio, and I am sure a few of her classmates followed suit. Whatever works.
May 30, 2024
If you like a Separate Peace and the Lord of the Flies you will appreciate this book. The book deals with a group of juvenile delinquents who are sent away to summer camp in hopes of social rehabilitation. The narrative moves quickly and the characters come to life in short time.
The book (1970) and film (1971) deal with many issues that are still relevant today like gun violence in America. I enjoyed the movie but feel the book is superior in almost every aspect and I highly recommend it.
The book (1970) and film (1971) deal with many issues that are still relevant today like gun violence in America. I enjoyed the movie but feel the book is superior in almost every aspect and I highly recommend it.
October 19, 2016
This book was recommended to me by so many people so I couldn't wait to dive in. A few chapters in though I found myself not really into the story. I tried three different times to read the full book and I just couldn't do it. I felt like the story was moving a little too slow and before long I had lost interest.
December 27, 2016
Found a falling-apart copy of this book in a box of mementos from the 1970s as I was doing post-hoiiday reorganization. This was an amazing story; one of the most poignant books I have ever read. Read it in the span of a few hours, and it brought back so many memories that I nearly overdosed on nostalgia. Sigh.......
January 4, 2017
This book is adventurous and shows how if you stick together you can accomplish anything. They escaped because they were looked at as the kids that couldn't do much. When they really could do a lot more then expected.
July 17, 2025
"Bless the Beasts and Children" was an interesting surprise. It's one of those books I would have never picked on my own, had it not been chosen for a book club, because I tend to avoid extremely American novels, and this one is a very American and very masculine novel. From the obsession with competition, guns, cars to the legacy of violence against wildlife, it is a representation of American masculinity myths. I found this quote to encompass the entire book: "For this is the marrowbone of every American adventure story: some men with guns, going somewhere, to do something dangerous.
From the very first paragraph, the novel drew me in with its haunting atmosphere. Swarthout’s writing is exquisite and it induces a sense of unease and fragility all at once. Beneath the surface of what could seem like a simple adventure story, he builds a disturbing reflection on the failure of adults to protect the world around them.
We follow six boys, aged 12 to 15, who have been sent by their emotionally distant, wealthy parents to a boys' camp in Arizona, designed to "make men" out of them. Imagine all the cliches about "alpha males". The camp is cruel and humiliating. The boys are bullied not just by the other children, but by the adults running the place, the competitive structure of the camp promoting this. Groups are ranked by performance, assigned faux-Native American tribal names and given grotesque rewards such as taxidermied animal heads. It's adult cruelty disguised as discipline.
Our group of protagonists are broken boys who find a sense of community through shared trauma. Each of the boys has a troubled history, and we learn about their psychological wounds through flashbacks told in a detached tone, like snippets from case files. This fragmented structure works unexpectedly well. It pulls us deeper into their individual minds while revealing how little empathy or understanding they've ever received from their families.
The plot centers on a night-time escape, that involves car stealing, gun shooting and a noble goal. It's a Western, but with boys, an adventure triggered by a grotesque public spectacle they had witnessed the day before, which shattered the boys' already fragile sense of the world. Despite their inexperience and chaotic planning, their mission becomes a last grasp at meaning. They are children, trying to find their way in a world where adults promote cruelty.
One thing that stands out is the disturbing imagery of animal cruelty. If you're sensitive to such descriptions, maybe this is not the book for you, because Swarthout describes such moments in horrific detail, forcing the reader to confront things that are often ignored. It's brutal, heartbreaking, but necessary for the story to move along.
This novel is about the deep and often silent bond between children and animals, both victims of adult violence and institutional control. It's a protest novel wrapped in the packaging of a coming-of-age story, about how adults can break young spirits, and how children can act with more compassion and bravery than those charged with their care. It will stay with me, although I recommend it with caution.
From the very first paragraph, the novel drew me in with its haunting atmosphere. Swarthout’s writing is exquisite and it induces a sense of unease and fragility all at once. Beneath the surface of what could seem like a simple adventure story, he builds a disturbing reflection on the failure of adults to protect the world around them.
We follow six boys, aged 12 to 15, who have been sent by their emotionally distant, wealthy parents to a boys' camp in Arizona, designed to "make men" out of them. Imagine all the cliches about "alpha males". The camp is cruel and humiliating. The boys are bullied not just by the other children, but by the adults running the place, the competitive structure of the camp promoting this. Groups are ranked by performance, assigned faux-Native American tribal names and given grotesque rewards such as taxidermied animal heads. It's adult cruelty disguised as discipline.
Our group of protagonists are broken boys who find a sense of community through shared trauma. Each of the boys has a troubled history, and we learn about their psychological wounds through flashbacks told in a detached tone, like snippets from case files. This fragmented structure works unexpectedly well. It pulls us deeper into their individual minds while revealing how little empathy or understanding they've ever received from their families.
The plot centers on a night-time escape, that involves car stealing, gun shooting and a noble goal. It's a Western, but with boys, an adventure triggered by a grotesque public spectacle they had witnessed the day before, which shattered the boys' already fragile sense of the world. Despite their inexperience and chaotic planning, their mission becomes a last grasp at meaning. They are children, trying to find their way in a world where adults promote cruelty.
One thing that stands out is the disturbing imagery of animal cruelty. If you're sensitive to such descriptions, maybe this is not the book for you, because Swarthout describes such moments in horrific detail, forcing the reader to confront things that are often ignored. It's brutal, heartbreaking, but necessary for the story to move along.
This novel is about the deep and often silent bond between children and animals, both victims of adult violence and institutional control. It's a protest novel wrapped in the packaging of a coming-of-age story, about how adults can break young spirits, and how children can act with more compassion and bravery than those charged with their care. It will stay with me, although I recommend it with caution.
November 7, 2015
I was forced to read this for school, but it was pretty good, actually. I enjoyed the overall story and the messages it conveyed, even though the writing felt a bit stilted and awkward to me.
July 17, 2025
A group of boys goes on a wild adventure to save the buffaloes.
Personally, I did not enjoy all that much this story as it is about outcasts boys that wanted to prove their manhood and power and all that.
However, if that is not something that hinders you in any way, it is a very well documented story about what neglect in a (rich) family can do to a young boy and all the social implications of that manifested behavior in the said child. It also makes you think about the implication of animal cruelty and overconsumption and what can one individual do to make things better and all that.
So, this is definitely for western fans, for boys that want to reminisce about how it was like to go on adventures with the group, for naturalists, for people that root for the underdogs and for people who want to enjoy a good book.
Personally, I did not enjoy all that much this story as it is about outcasts boys that wanted to prove their manhood and power and all that.
However, if that is not something that hinders you in any way, it is a very well documented story about what neglect in a (rich) family can do to a young boy and all the social implications of that manifested behavior in the said child. It also makes you think about the implication of animal cruelty and overconsumption and what can one individual do to make things better and all that.
So, this is definitely for western fans, for boys that want to reminisce about how it was like to go on adventures with the group, for naturalists, for people that root for the underdogs and for people who want to enjoy a good book.
February 15, 2025
Binecuvantati animalele si copiii de Glendon Swarthout este un roman care ne aduce într-un spațiu unic, unde copiii cu probleme și „dificili” devin eroii lor proprii. Publicată inițial în 1970 și adaptată pentru ecran în 1971 sub regia lui Stanley Kramer, această carte nu este doar o poveste despre tineret, ci o explorare profundă a maturizării, inadaptării și a puterii conexiunilor umane.
Cotton, personajul principal, conduce o tabără din Arizona, locul unde se întâlnesc șase copii cu istorii complicate, fiecare având propriile sale lupte. Prin experiențele lor intense și emoționale, Swarthout ne arată cum aceste „excepții” pot să se transforme în ființe mai puternice și mai conștiente.
Cartea abordează teme universale precum acceptarea, toleranța și importanța sănătății mentale, făcându-se ecoul ideii că fiecare dintre noi are valoare, indiferent de cum suntem percepuți de ceilalți. Este inspirator să vedem cum Cotton își asumă rolul de mentor și prieten, oferind acestor copii un sprijin care le schimbă viața.
Nominalizată pentru Premiul Pulitzer, această carte a marcat epoca prin profunzimea sa emotională și prin impactul său cultural, ajungând să inspire chiar și melodia cu același titlu a grupului The Carpenters.
Cotton, personajul principal, conduce o tabără din Arizona, locul unde se întâlnesc șase copii cu istorii complicate, fiecare având propriile sale lupte. Prin experiențele lor intense și emoționale, Swarthout ne arată cum aceste „excepții” pot să se transforme în ființe mai puternice și mai conștiente.
Cartea abordează teme universale precum acceptarea, toleranța și importanța sănătății mentale, făcându-se ecoul ideii că fiecare dintre noi are valoare, indiferent de cum suntem percepuți de ceilalți. Este inspirator să vedem cum Cotton își asumă rolul de mentor și prieten, oferind acestor copii un sprijin care le schimbă viața.
Nominalizată pentru Premiul Pulitzer, această carte a marcat epoca prin profunzimea sa emotională și prin impactul său cultural, ajungând să inspire chiar și melodia cu același titlu a grupului The Carpenters.
December 16, 2020
Every now and then I read books that I read in school, mostly to see if my impressions have changed with maturity. This book was read to my class by an idealistic rookie teacher when I was in Grade 8...almost 40 years ago. I remembered that it involved emotionally disturbed kids at a summer camp, but the rescue of the buffalo from slaughter had long ago disappeared from my memory. It was an ok story, and I get why it is used in schools as there is a lot of food for thought in this book, but really I was underwhelmed. I can say that Grade 8 was much too young for this book, but that same teacher also read us Lord Of The Flies, and we were definitely not ready for that either. And I also think she made an error in judgement in reading this to a bunch of farm kids who were very well versed in where their meat comes from and how it gets from hoof to table. The shock value in the buffalo slaughter was rather lost on us. It was fairly well written, and paints an interesting picture of life in the late 1960's, and also shows how far we have come in understanding child psychology.
December 30, 2017
This was assigned reading in high school, I remember liking it and then seeing the movie which came out later in the 70s. But I recall nothing about the plot. I get the impression that many here read it for class in high school. Here's what I do recall though about the movie made of the book, starring Billy Mummy, the freckle-faced kid from the TV series "Lost in Space": my sister and all her early teen friends at the time who saw the movie were in love with him
November 29, 2015
Such a great book
I remembered reading this book in high school English class. For years I remembered and occasionally sang the 'Home on the range' twist. I just recently decided to read it again. Such a great read. Finished in a day, I couldn't put it down. As captivating now as it was then.
I remembered reading this book in high school English class. For years I remembered and occasionally sang the 'Home on the range' twist. I just recently decided to read it again. Such a great read. Finished in a day, I couldn't put it down. As captivating now as it was then.
April 7, 2017
As an 11-year old kid, this book really touched something in me, though I loved the movie much more. I don't know how it would stand up to contemporary preadolescents, though. Might seem a bit dated now.
February 3, 2023
I remember being emotionally impacted by this book. It really haunted me. I’ve always loved kids and animals and underdogs, and this book was about them. Great story.
January 30, 2022
Loved the characters and symbolism in this book.
March 22, 2026
Благослови животните и децата, като им дадеш:
любов,
приятелство,
съчувствие,
милост,
внимание,
живот.
Изглежда лесно, Боже! Само че си дал на човека и оръжие. И свободната воля да го ползва според съвестта.А Глендън Суортаут знае какво се случва, когато човекът се възприеме като пълен господар на всичко около себе си.
Това е история за шест момчета неудачници, които решават да спасят стадо бизони. Но бизоните съвсем не са свободни из прерията – те са пушечно месо в американски лагер за възмъжаване.
Иронията е, че идеята изглежда абсурдна и безсмислена. Как да пуснеш на свобода нещо, което не познава свободата? И къде в съвременния свят има онази дива пустош, необходима на бизона – онази, която някога го е превърнала в тотем? Човекът отдавна е прерязал пъпната връв с майката природа.
Обезлюдени пространства, в които няма местно население. Индианските племена са останали само като нарицателни имена на лагерни отбори. Прерията, проядена от машини, галерии и мини, не може да роди живот.
И ето я великолепната шесторка от пиклювци – изоставени, унижавани, пренебрегнати – решила да върне целостта на света, да възвърне онзи „дом в зелени планини, с бизони, антилопи и сърни, където всяка дума е щастлива и облак небесата не закрива.“
Спомних си и своето детство – онези луди идеи, които имахме, за да спасим света. Спомних си и детските лагери, в които ни изпращаха, за да станем по-самостоятелни. А всъщност изпитвахме същите чувства като тези момчета – понякога самотни, друг път неразбрани.
Дори си помислих, че може би затова книга, издадена в Америка през седемдесетте години, не е публикувана у нас до 1987 година.
Тази кратка повест – или роман… или може би новела (макар че жанрът на новелата у нас е доста неясно понятие) – съвсем не е просто книга за едни малки мъже. Това е книга за пътя. За дързостта да извършиш добро, което никой не е поискал от теб. За загубата на невинността.
За обществото ни, в което най-уязвимите са и най-невинните.
За опита и порастването, които винаги имат своята цена.
любов,
приятелство,
съчувствие,
милост,
внимание,
живот.
Изглежда лесно, Боже! Само че си дал на човека и оръжие. И свободната воля да го ползва според съвестта.А Глендън Суортаут знае какво се случва, когато човекът се възприеме като пълен господар на всичко около себе си.
Това е история за шест момчета неудачници, които решават да спасят стадо бизони. Но бизоните съвсем не са свободни из прерията – те са пушечно месо в американски лагер за възмъжаване.
Иронията е, че идеята изглежда абсурдна и безсмислена. Как да пуснеш на свобода нещо, което не познава свободата? И къде в съвременния свят има онази дива пустош, необходима на бизона – онази, която някога го е превърнала в тотем? Човекът отдавна е прерязал пъпната връв с майката природа.
Обезлюдени пространства, в които няма местно население. Индианските племена са останали само като нарицателни имена на лагерни отбори. Прерията, проядена от машини, галерии и мини, не може да роди живот.
И ето я великолепната шесторка от пиклювци – изоставени, унижавани, пренебрегнати – решила да върне целостта на света, да възвърне онзи „дом в зелени планини, с бизони, антилопи и сърни, където всяка дума е щастлива и облак небесата не закрива.“
Спомних си и своето детство – онези луди идеи, които имахме, за да спасим света. Спомних си и детските лагери, в които ни изпращаха, за да станем по-самостоятелни. А всъщност изпитвахме същите чувства като тези момчета – понякога самотни, друг път неразбрани.
Дори си помислих, че може би затова книга, издадена в Америка през седемдесетте години, не е публикувана у нас до 1987 година.
Тази кратка повест – или роман… или може би новела (макар че жанрът на новелата у нас е доста неясно понятие) – съвсем не е просто книга за едни малки мъже. Това е книга за пътя. За дързостта да извършиш добро, което никой не е поискал от теб. За загубата на невинността.
За обществото ни, в което най-уязвимите са и най-невинните.
За опита и порастването, които винаги имат своята цена.
June 29, 2025
Despre ritualuri de trecere de la copilărie la adolescență, despre viața și moarte, despre cruzime și empatie, despre prietenie.
April 7, 2015
At first, I was thinking that this is another typical boy scout stories. But behind that facade, the story is much more complex than I initially estimated. It tells about important issues in American society originated in the 60s and 70s decades of 20th century, some of them continuing even to present day.
As greatly pointed out by Glendon, when a society has issues, the children are the most vulnerable. And there is no wonder if that society sees abnormal behavior in their children. That is the main message of the novel, slightly generalized to the respective US society. But as everything is now global, US exported also their life style to other countries, thus these are no longer just American issues. I liked it a lot, so I'll give it a 5 for premise.
Regarding the form, I greatly liked the way flash-backs are incorporated. Inside normal flowing story, you suddenly see some text starting to be written in italic. These are the flash-backs which are a lot, but they complement the story very well as it started in the middle of it, without a proper introduction. Then I liked also the fact that it fits so well the constraints of the genre. It is a slim novel, with simple narrative, making it clear when flash back is used. Overall I believe I found another gifted writer, so I'll give it a 5 for form.
In terms of originality, coming of age stories are found in world literature as often as mushrooms after rain. But this one stands apart by the fact that the protagonists are not normal average kids, they are emotionally disturbed by the society or their families and are also not the regular winners Americans simply love and all aspire to be. Frankly they are not also geeks, but simply not bright at any sportive of physical challenge. Due to this interesting choice not too often found in such novels, I will give it a 4 for the level of originality.
On the characters, I believe these kids are one of the best lead characters from almost any coming of age novel I have read so far. They are so real that if I met some of them on the street I would not be surprised. This tells all about how good they are, so I will give it a 5 for characters.
Regarding the complexity and difficulty, the novel is deliberately constructed to be easy to read. This does not imply that it is at the same time simple. Due to the message that implies many other untold things about the American society, I believe it is quite complex. So I will rate it with a 3 for complexity and difficulty.
In terms of credibility, if we compare it with Hollywood mainstream this is much more down to Earth. It can easily happened and if I would read such a story in a newspaper (of course journalism will stick just to the facts), I would believe it. This is why my rating for credibility is 5.
The last criteria is edition. Despite having some minor glitches, my ebook was surprisingly well edited. Regarding translation, I think it was a good one, as I did not felt the translator hand at all. It reads as if it was originally written in Romanian. This is why I will give it a 4.
To summarize, a great novel that exceeded my expectations. I think I will recommend it to my kid when he will grow up, as I believe it is one of the best coming of age novels I've read ever. All in all, my final rating for it is 4.43, which I will round it to 4 on Goodreads system.
For more details on how I rated and reviewed this novel, please read these guidelines.
As greatly pointed out by Glendon, when a society has issues, the children are the most vulnerable. And there is no wonder if that society sees abnormal behavior in their children. That is the main message of the novel, slightly generalized to the respective US society. But as everything is now global, US exported also their life style to other countries, thus these are no longer just American issues. I liked it a lot, so I'll give it a 5 for premise.
Regarding the form, I greatly liked the way flash-backs are incorporated. Inside normal flowing story, you suddenly see some text starting to be written in italic. These are the flash-backs which are a lot, but they complement the story very well as it started in the middle of it, without a proper introduction. Then I liked also the fact that it fits so well the constraints of the genre. It is a slim novel, with simple narrative, making it clear when flash back is used. Overall I believe I found another gifted writer, so I'll give it a 5 for form.
In terms of originality, coming of age stories are found in world literature as often as mushrooms after rain. But this one stands apart by the fact that the protagonists are not normal average kids, they are emotionally disturbed by the society or their families and are also not the regular winners Americans simply love and all aspire to be. Frankly they are not also geeks, but simply not bright at any sportive of physical challenge. Due to this interesting choice not too often found in such novels, I will give it a 4 for the level of originality.
On the characters, I believe these kids are one of the best lead characters from almost any coming of age novel I have read so far. They are so real that if I met some of them on the street I would not be surprised. This tells all about how good they are, so I will give it a 5 for characters.
Regarding the complexity and difficulty, the novel is deliberately constructed to be easy to read. This does not imply that it is at the same time simple. Due to the message that implies many other untold things about the American society, I believe it is quite complex. So I will rate it with a 3 for complexity and difficulty.
In terms of credibility, if we compare it with Hollywood mainstream this is much more down to Earth. It can easily happened and if I would read such a story in a newspaper (of course journalism will stick just to the facts), I would believe it. This is why my rating for credibility is 5.
The last criteria is edition. Despite having some minor glitches, my ebook was surprisingly well edited. Regarding translation, I think it was a good one, as I did not felt the translator hand at all. It reads as if it was originally written in Romanian. This is why I will give it a 4.
To summarize, a great novel that exceeded my expectations. I think I will recommend it to my kid when he will grow up, as I believe it is one of the best coming of age novels I've read ever. All in all, my final rating for it is 4.43, which I will round it to 4 on Goodreads system.
+--------------------------+-----------------+
| Criteria | Rating |
+--------------------------+-----------------+
|Premise | 5 |
+--------------------------+-----------------+
|Form | 5 |
+--------------------------+-----------------+
|Originality | 4 |
+--------------------------+-----------------+
|Characters | 5 |
+--------------------------+-----------------+
|Difficulty/Complexity | 3 |
+--------------------------+-----------------+
|Credibility | 5 |
+--------------------------+-----------------+
|Edition | 4 |
+--------------------------+-----------------+
|Total | 4.43 |
+--------------------------+-----------------+
For more details on how I rated and reviewed this novel, please read these guidelines.
August 20, 2010
Listened to audio version of Swarthout's 1970 novel and liked it. Scott Brick is the narrator and his "voicing" is clear and fine. I once attended a camp in NH for "rich kids" whose parents were too busy for them when I was 14. Not the greatest experience. Although we weren't the "Bedwetters," girls did form up into groups. Becky, a hair-sucking thin blond, was my roommate and we earned our share of demerits. Used to "do" this book, largely aloud, with students who were "reluctant readers" - rejected kids/kids without supportive families. Most were boys. The attempt to save the buffalo, the leadership of Cotton, the detailed portrayal of all the Bedwetters and their persecutors - still ring true lo these many years later. Made me search for old copies of "A Separate Peace," "Phineas," and "Lord of the Flies." A good read listen!
March 1, 2013
This was a wonderful novel and one of the best coming-of-age stories I've read. It captivated me from the first page and held me to the end as I read it in one sitting. Full of symbolism and imagery, it chronicles the children maturing and assuming their role as outcasts and rebels to the system, an idea very familiar to the year the novel was penned, 1970. It ends in perhaps the most unexpected of ways, but it left me speechless. All in all, a well-written work. One of my mother's childhood favorites and recommended to me by her.
February 25, 2017
I loved!! this book. Glendon Swarthout is an author I love and this book is indeed another masterpiece. I remember hearing about the movie made from this book when I was a kid. I definitely need to see it. On to one of his earlier works to see how that is...
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