Bobby Of Cloverfield Farm

by Helen Fuller Orton

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132 pages, Paperback

First published August 21, 2009

About the author

Orton began writing at 48 when her children had grown up and her love of history and historical research informed many of her books. Her goal was to include history in the lives of ordinary people so her books often featured historical mysteries. She lived much of her life in the New York City area.

Reviews

[Debbie Zapata · Rating 3 out of 5]

This little book was the early draw for my year-long short work challenge. I had read Prince and Rover of Cloverfield Farm a couple of years ago (can't believe it has been quite that long, but the dates are there) and added this one to my challenge list since I liked the other one quite a bit.

Bobby's story was cute, too. Simple chapters that would be easy reading for youngsters and fun to read aloud for the adults. You get a glimpse of a little farm boy's life. The book was published in 1922, but I think the lifestyle depicted was some years before that.

Bobby has typical boyhood adventures: falling into the duck pond when he was not supposed to be on the raft at all, falling off Prince the horse when he begs to ride him back to the barn one day for dinner and the horse gets to going a little faster than expected; breaking the big plate glass window in the sitting-room and hurrying to try and have it fixed before Mother comes home from a three week visit to her sister.

Simple adventures told in a pleasingly simple style. I don't think children today would be able to identify with Bobby too much, though. So many things have changed, even in a farming household like his. But as a cute peek at a long-lost way of life, this book was perfect.

[Dayna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny that I have had 2 similar things happen to me in childhood as Bobby: thrown from a horse into thistles and my dad jumping over a fence to save me, and playing wall ball and breaking our south facing window. The kids loved hearing all about it.

[Larry Piper · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book for children that came out in 1922. It describes the culture in which our grandparents grew up, a time our political parties like to invoke as the essence of American, but a time which is long past. Basically, it is a number of little stories about the life of a small boy growing up on a farm. Although I gave it 4 stars, one should take that rating in context. This is not Dickens or Willa Cather by any stretch of the imagination. But as a book for children, which gives them a flavor of the past and which evokes many cultural references still common today, it is quite good. Helen Fuller Orton was one of my favorite authors back in third grade. Her writing is simple and clear.