Barry: The Bravest Saint Bernard

by Lynn Hall, Antonio Castro L. (Illustrator)

Relates the feats of Barry, the Saint Bernard dog whose name, to this day, honors the best dog at the Saint Bernard Monastery.

Genres: Childrens, Picture Books, Animals, Dogs, History, Adventure, Historical

48 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

Lynn Hall was the author of over fifty novels for juvenile and young adult readers, as well as over two dozen novels for younger readers. Her books focus on coming-of-age stories featuring dogs and horses.

Reviews

[Rod Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is the embodiment of a John Steinbeck quote from The Moon Is Down:

The paintings on the wall were largely preoccupied with the amazing heroism of large dogs faced with imperiled children. Nor water nor fire nor earthquake could do in a child so long as a big dog was available.

Barry is a search and rescue dog in the Swiss alps, helping to save people who have gotten lost or buried by an avalanche. If you have sensitive children, be aware that not all the rescues are successful: some people die and Barry is severely injured once. Barry's eventual death from old age and final fate as a taxidermy display are also noted.

Despite the attempts to make it an adventure story, I found the narrative rather flat. Partly, that might be due to the fact that my version of the book is an abridgment of the original version, but I'm not going to seek out the original to find out.


FOR REFERENCE:

Contents: 1. Barry and Werner -- 2. Training Days -- 3. A Terrible Winter -- 4. One Last Rescue

[Rena Sherwood · Rating 2 out of 5]

This review is for the abridged edition. I haven't read the full edition so I do not know how much was cut out for this book. It did feel like there were a lot of gaps, even for a kid's book. Events jumped about a bit.



The artwork was great -- the text, not so much. Perhaps I was hoping for too much from a kids' book, but I did feel disappointed that so little of Barry's story and the story of the original St. Bernards was told. For example, did you know that after Barry died, he was stuffed? Now you do. Here he is:



I have no idea if he was shaved after he died or if he died with such a thin coat, which is not seen in today's St. Bernards. Shows you how much a breed can change in just 100 or 150 years.

[Miss Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful story that tells the story of one of the St. Bernard rescue dogs in mountains.

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Barry was an exceptional rescue dog who resided at the Monastery of St. Bernard in the Swiss Alps over 125 years ago. The monastery dogs were called on to help guide travelers through the treacherous mountain passes, and to assist in the rescue of victims trapped in avalanches. Barry was the bravest of the fourteen dogs who lived at the monastery. He rescued more than 40 people over his lifetime. This heartwarming nonfiction book tells Barry's story. It's written for children in the middle grades, and would be a good book for parents who enjoy reading to/with their children.

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful true story for early chapter book readers. Obviously, the characters, and perhaps this particular Barry are composites. However it tells an exciting and sweet story of the remarkable Saint Bernard dogs housed at a monastery of the same name, and the monks who devoted themselves to rescuing people in the Alps. Both those lost or buried in avalanches. It became a tradition afterwards to name the finest dog Barry so that there would always be one. This edition of the book has new illustrations, rather than the originals found in the "Garrard Publishers" first edition. The story is current to the 1990s but I've found out that though the monks are still there running a Hospice the dogs became too much of an expense to keep, as there are now modern ways to rescue people and a smaller group of monks were incapable of the daily care of so many dogs. Well-written and will appeal especially to dog lovers as there is some peril, but this is not one of those "dead dog" stories. Too bad it is out of print! Should be made available on Kindle.

[JJ Waggy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is so much more delightful to have unearthed this book from my childhood at a time in my life when I have a very dear and close friend named Barry. (He would probably not be pleased at the comparison, but I think it's hilarious.)
The illustrations in this Step into Reading book are colorful and lively, the story is quick and interesting, the characters are lovable. It doesn't have that halting feel that a lot of kids' books do, and it's not terribly condescending in writing style, which makes it awesome to me. I'm glad to have rediscovered it, and continue to find Saint Bernards to be wonderful and incredibly loving dogs. And yes, I'm totally going to loan this to Barry and see what his reaction is.

[Melanie, Aaron, Annie, and Mary Project · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read by: Melanie
Author/Illustrated by: Lynn Hall Ill: Antonio Castro
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Grade Level: 2-4
Equiv: 3.6
DRA: N/A
Lexile:550L

A touching book about a brave search dog, Barry, his lifelong friendship with Werner and many accomplishments of life saving efforts he showed throughout his life. This book describes how the jobs of a search dog are important and relays a heartwarming story of the relationship between Werner and Barry and how they worked together. This story touches on some important topics in life like an attempted armed robbery and the sorrow of losing a friend.

[Tirzah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was one of the many that my younger version would always swipe off my brother's bookshelf. I read it so many times that one day, I at long last received my own copy. Written for the elementary grades, it shares the true story of Barry, one of the many Saint Bernards who was trained to be a rescue dog. The illustrations are warm and appealing. While Barry is the main hero of the story, readers also learn from the courage and nobility of Werner, Barry's beloved trainer, and the other men in the monastery. Barry's story is an excellent addition to any school curriculum or home library.

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

My 7 year old and I finished this book yesterday and we both enjoyed it till the end, when, after a full and rewarding life, the dear dog dies his peaceful death. I thought it was a so lovely but my son burst into tears and was inconsolable for ages. So, if you have a tender hearted little person at your house, be aware that the dog does die in the end.

[Rosa Cline · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very nice book of a true story of how a St Bernard dog helped rescue travelers and the handlers that helped him as well. The writing sometimes was 'slow' even for a level 5 chapter kids book. But the subject and rest of the story was so good that one can overlook those parts. Very nicely done and informative about true life events.

[Hilary · Rating 2 out of 5]

The pictures are not very good. The story is stilted. But there are very few stories about Saint Bernards (beyond "Beethoven") and I read this so I could simplify the story as a read-aloud for preschoolers.

[Trisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

My in-laws had the original print of this fantastic children's book published in 1973. This is a great story of a rescue Saint Bernard living high in the Swiss Alps, perfect for early elementary school aged children.

[Cws]

JEAR3-Hal

[Stephen Snyder · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful book of true heroes! A great read for anyone who loves dogs and believes in the power of love. KUDOS!

Thank you for the loan Franklin Public Library.

[Debby Baumgartner · Rating 2 out of 5]

Easy reader about the famous Barry, St. Bernard who rescued travelers in the Swiss Alps between 1800 and 1812.

[Angie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was not expecting this book to be as good as it was. We read it in one sitting, and I’m not sure I could have convinced my listeners to let me stop if I had tried. It read like fiction with great pacing, but was actually a true story. When we learned that, we were sent down a rabbit trail of looking for more information about this great Saint Bernard, Barry. How fun to see his figure preserved with taxidermy in a Swiss museum. We learned that the breed has changed over the years, and he didn’t really look like the images portrayed in this book.

[Melissa Namba · Rating 5 out of 5]

Based on a true story and a must read for dog lovers. These are episodes that are carefully curated to highlight Barry's heroic acts. I am glad he got to die of old age. Because my heart would have been broken if he died after being stabbed.

[Izzy · Rating 5 out of 5]

AMAZING.

[Catherine Lowe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting true story of the most famous of the dogs bred at the Saint Bernard Monastery. My student was a little sad at the end when he read that Barry is now on display in a museum in Switzerland.

[Gina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting details about the history of the breed focusing on one of the greatest of them.

[Bethany Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this to my student, she enjoyed it.