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Freddy the Pig #17
Freddy the Cowboy
As a recent USA Today feature about the Freddy phenomenon noted, the Freddy books brilliantly illustrate the cardinal virtues: "fair play and a good sense of humor."
In Freddy the Cowboy, Freddy buys a pony, learns to ride, and winds up in a tussle with the rascaliest varmint in Centerboro. It seems Mr. Flint, owner of the dude ranch, is plotting to rob the First Animal Bank where the animals keep their valuables. And from there on in Freddy and Flint develop a mutual dislike for one another-so much so that Flint lets it be known he will shoot Freddy on sight! With the aid of a brave mouse, the Horrible Ten, and the Bean Farm gang-not to mention Cy, his trusty mount-Freddy shoots it out with Flint in the aisles of the cosmetics department of the Busy Bee. The Wild West was never like this!
In Freddy the Cowboy, Freddy buys a pony, learns to ride, and winds up in a tussle with the rascaliest varmint in Centerboro. It seems Mr. Flint, owner of the dude ranch, is plotting to rob the First Animal Bank where the animals keep their valuables. And from there on in Freddy and Flint develop a mutual dislike for one another-so much so that Flint lets it be known he will shoot Freddy on sight! With the aid of a brave mouse, the Horrible Ten, and the Bean Farm gang-not to mention Cy, his trusty mount-Freddy shoots it out with Flint in the aisles of the cosmetics department of the Busy Bee. The Wild West was never like this!
233 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1950
4 people are currently reading
94 people want to read
About the author
Walter Rollin Brooks
51 books66 followersWalter Rollin Brooks (January 9, 1886 – August 17, 1958) was an American writer best remembered for his short stories and children's books, particularly those about Freddy the Pig and other anthropomorphic animal inhabitants of the "Bean farm" in upstate New York.
Born in Rome, New York, Brooks attended college at the University of Rochester and subsequently studied homeopathic medicine in New York City. He dropped out after two years, however, and returned to Rochester, where he married his first wife, Anne Shepard, in 1909. Brooks found employment with an advertising agency in Utica, and then "retired" in 1911, evidently because he came into a considerable inheritance. His retirement was not permanent: in 1917, he went to work for the American Red Cross and later did editorial work for several magazines, including The New Yorker.
In 1940, Brooks turned to his own writing for his full-time occupation. Walter married his second wife, Dorothy Collins, following the death of Anne in 1952.
The first works Brooks published were poems and short stories. His short story "Ed Takes the Pledge" about a talking horse was the basis for the 1960s television comedy series Mister Ed (credit for creating the characters is given in each episode to "Walter Brooks"). His most enduring works, however, are the 26 books he wrote about Freddy the Pig and his friends.
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Born in Rome, New York, Brooks attended college at the University of Rochester and subsequently studied homeopathic medicine in New York City. He dropped out after two years, however, and returned to Rochester, where he married his first wife, Anne Shepard, in 1909. Brooks found employment with an advertising agency in Utica, and then "retired" in 1911, evidently because he came into a considerable inheritance. His retirement was not permanent: in 1917, he went to work for the American Red Cross and later did editorial work for several magazines, including The New Yorker.
In 1940, Brooks turned to his own writing for his full-time occupation. Walter married his second wife, Dorothy Collins, following the death of Anne in 1952.
The first works Brooks published were poems and short stories. His short story "Ed Takes the Pledge" about a talking horse was the basis for the 1960s television comedy series Mister Ed (credit for creating the characters is given in each episode to "Walter Brooks"). His most enduring works, however, are the 26 books he wrote about Freddy the Pig and his friends.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
September 5, 2019
Brief PSA:
Jinx is my child, y'all.
Back off.
I had him first.
He's mine.
;-P
Jinx is my child, y'all.
Back off.
I had him first.
He's mine.
;-P
July 9, 2021
"Freddy the Cowboy" is a satire of the Dude Ranch; that is to say a resort where one can wear cowboy clothes and pretend to live in the Wild West. The few that remain today are called guest ranches. In 1950, when "Freddy the Cowboy" was published they were at the height of the popularity and so Brook's lampooning of them was quite fitting. Unfortunately children of the right age bracket in 2021 are unlikely to have ever heard of dude ranches and will take absolutely no pleasure in this title. To make matters worse, the plot, dialogues and descriptions are weak even by the standards of the series. Grandparents determined to introduce Freddy to their grandchildren should select a different title from the series.
During the 1960's when I was between the ages of 7 and 9, I was a great fan of the Freddy Books which have since fallen out of print. Too many of the books in the series share the weaknesses of this novel which makes it very unlikely that any publisher will ever try to relaunch this series whose time is clearly past.
During the 1960's when I was between the ages of 7 and 9, I was a great fan of the Freddy Books which have since fallen out of print. Too many of the books in the series share the weaknesses of this novel which makes it very unlikely that any publisher will ever try to relaunch this series whose time is clearly past.
July 25, 2017
I rated it two and a half stars. The first half was good. The second was alright.
August 30, 2018
The Porcine Cowboy vs. The Perfumed Cowboy, or Reputation, Racism, Gender-Bending, Cowboys, and Animals
In Freddy the Cowboy (1950), Walter R. Brooks' 17th Freddy book, the mice are bored with the dull life on the NY state Bean farm, so Mrs. Wiggins the cow suggests that all like-minded animals head off in different directions and return in a week to recount their adventures. Freddy the pig (detective, poet, editor, banker, and pig of many interests) and one mouse, Quik, go northeast and quickly come upon a man beating a horse. Freddy, who can't abide cruelty to animals, intervenes and ends up buying the horse (called Cy) from the guy for $50. The man, Mr. Cal Flint, is a western cowboy who's running a dude ranch for easterners. Mr. Flint is also suspiciously interested in the First Animal Bank on the Bean farm when Freddy makes a withdrawal to pay for Cy. With great enthusiasm and Cy's encouragement and expert advice, Freddy learns how to play the cowboy, learning to ride, to lasso, to strum the guitar and sing cowboy songs, and to dress the part, wearing "a bright red shirt with a design of yellow and blue lightning flashes on it." But what about the threatening letter he's received from the "Horrible Ten" in which they threaten him with execution unless he turns over the jewels he stole—even though he has no idea about any jewels, let alone the identity of the Horrible Ten? And what will happen when Freddy, armed with a water pistol and a gun loaded with blanks, makes a bitter foe of a sadistic cowboy with real guns with real bullets?
In Brooks' usual humorous, philosophical, and unpredictable way, he answers those questions and concisely develops some side-plots, like the black cat Jinx teaching a group of field mice how to avoid traps, Mrs. Wiggins working in an antique shop for a spell, and the Horrible Ten moving from the realm of prank into that of reality.
The core plot of the novel is oriented around reputation. Freddy discovers the dangers of being taken for a tough cowboy. "You go and build a reputation for bravery, and then the first thing you know, there's a fight on your hands. And maybe you don't feel specially brave that morning. But you've got to act as if you did." The Horrible Ten play up their bloodthirsty reputation to feel empowered. Freddy's friend the Centerboro Sheriff is concerned about his reputation in town for making things too cozy in the jail for his prisoners. And Freddy's ad hoc attempts to resolve his feud with Mr. Flint involve reputation.
The animals in this novel may be read as satirizing racial discrimination, as when Mr. Flint and his henchmen say things like, "Animals don't need money. They ain't got any right to money. That's what burns me up—that pig, talking as if he was people, with money in the bank and all." And even "this here feller ain't a man, he's a pig. And there wouldn't be any jail sentence for shootin' a pig." Most of the local humans don't find anything strange in animals having banks or talking etc., and Mr. Bannister (a wealthy man's butler) greets the animals as "gentlemen" and gives them (even Mrs. Wiggins) rides in his big car.
Brooks also of course has great sympathy for animals as animals. As in his other books, in this one the bad guys are obvious by their mistreatment of animals (Mr. Flint beating Cy, kicking cats, eating squirrels, shooting at Freddy, etc.). Brooks sympathizes with small animals. The mice point out that they wouldn't get far walking off by themselves, so the big animals take one each with them when they go on adventures; Jinx saves a group of field mice from the extortions of a squirrel; one mouse, Howard, vitally helps Freddy by some bold action. And when Jinx is setting out on his adventure he has to be careful on the road, "For you never know what might be hidden by the turn and more than one careless cat has spent a week or two in the hospital by stepping around the corner too quickly. All small animals have to be careful about such things."
As in the other Freddy books, this one has an appealing non-violent thrust. When Freddy shoots his gun while learning to be a cowboy, the bullet passes through his pigpen wall till it "smacked into a framed enlargement of a snapshot of Mr. and Mrs. Bean, taken on their honeymoon, smashing the glass and replacing Mr. Bean's pictured head with the round black hole." It's a scary (if comical) demonstration of how dangerous guns are around the home. No wonder Mr. Bean tells him, "Don't allow my animals to have firearms." Thereafter, Freddy shoots only blanks. Freddy learns through his adventures as a cowboy that "There are two ways of getting rid of people: one way is by shooting them; the other way is by making them look ridiculous." Freddy doesn't usually solve his problems with violence, and violent characters are usually villains. Freddy does learn how to look and act like a cowboy, but Brooks undercuts the violent core at the heart of the western genre in his novel's climactic show down, which takes place in the women's section of a department store and features strategically applied lipstick, rouge, eye shadow, and perfume.
Finally, despite all its good parts, Freddy the Cowboy is not as good as the best Freddy books (e.g., Freddy and the Clockwork Twin, Freddy the Politician, and Freddy and the Popinjay). There is some sloppy writing, like when Brooks authoritatively says that bats are not social animals, and then a few pages later has Sydney the bat recruit the aid of countless other bats because his many relatives are having a big reunion party type gathering, to which many other unrelated bats have invited themselves. And the middle part drags a bit. Still, below average Brooks and Freddy are much better than most other children's books, and anyone fond of vintage talking animal stories or children's literature written with style and wit (much of which is only appreciable to adults) should enjoy this book.
In Freddy the Cowboy (1950), Walter R. Brooks' 17th Freddy book, the mice are bored with the dull life on the NY state Bean farm, so Mrs. Wiggins the cow suggests that all like-minded animals head off in different directions and return in a week to recount their adventures. Freddy the pig (detective, poet, editor, banker, and pig of many interests) and one mouse, Quik, go northeast and quickly come upon a man beating a horse. Freddy, who can't abide cruelty to animals, intervenes and ends up buying the horse (called Cy) from the guy for $50. The man, Mr. Cal Flint, is a western cowboy who's running a dude ranch for easterners. Mr. Flint is also suspiciously interested in the First Animal Bank on the Bean farm when Freddy makes a withdrawal to pay for Cy. With great enthusiasm and Cy's encouragement and expert advice, Freddy learns how to play the cowboy, learning to ride, to lasso, to strum the guitar and sing cowboy songs, and to dress the part, wearing "a bright red shirt with a design of yellow and blue lightning flashes on it." But what about the threatening letter he's received from the "Horrible Ten" in which they threaten him with execution unless he turns over the jewels he stole—even though he has no idea about any jewels, let alone the identity of the Horrible Ten? And what will happen when Freddy, armed with a water pistol and a gun loaded with blanks, makes a bitter foe of a sadistic cowboy with real guns with real bullets?
In Brooks' usual humorous, philosophical, and unpredictable way, he answers those questions and concisely develops some side-plots, like the black cat Jinx teaching a group of field mice how to avoid traps, Mrs. Wiggins working in an antique shop for a spell, and the Horrible Ten moving from the realm of prank into that of reality.
The core plot of the novel is oriented around reputation. Freddy discovers the dangers of being taken for a tough cowboy. "You go and build a reputation for bravery, and then the first thing you know, there's a fight on your hands. And maybe you don't feel specially brave that morning. But you've got to act as if you did." The Horrible Ten play up their bloodthirsty reputation to feel empowered. Freddy's friend the Centerboro Sheriff is concerned about his reputation in town for making things too cozy in the jail for his prisoners. And Freddy's ad hoc attempts to resolve his feud with Mr. Flint involve reputation.
The animals in this novel may be read as satirizing racial discrimination, as when Mr. Flint and his henchmen say things like, "Animals don't need money. They ain't got any right to money. That's what burns me up—that pig, talking as if he was people, with money in the bank and all." And even "this here feller ain't a man, he's a pig. And there wouldn't be any jail sentence for shootin' a pig." Most of the local humans don't find anything strange in animals having banks or talking etc., and Mr. Bannister (a wealthy man's butler) greets the animals as "gentlemen" and gives them (even Mrs. Wiggins) rides in his big car.
Brooks also of course has great sympathy for animals as animals. As in his other books, in this one the bad guys are obvious by their mistreatment of animals (Mr. Flint beating Cy, kicking cats, eating squirrels, shooting at Freddy, etc.). Brooks sympathizes with small animals. The mice point out that they wouldn't get far walking off by themselves, so the big animals take one each with them when they go on adventures; Jinx saves a group of field mice from the extortions of a squirrel; one mouse, Howard, vitally helps Freddy by some bold action. And when Jinx is setting out on his adventure he has to be careful on the road, "For you never know what might be hidden by the turn and more than one careless cat has spent a week or two in the hospital by stepping around the corner too quickly. All small animals have to be careful about such things."
As in the other Freddy books, this one has an appealing non-violent thrust. When Freddy shoots his gun while learning to be a cowboy, the bullet passes through his pigpen wall till it "smacked into a framed enlargement of a snapshot of Mr. and Mrs. Bean, taken on their honeymoon, smashing the glass and replacing Mr. Bean's pictured head with the round black hole." It's a scary (if comical) demonstration of how dangerous guns are around the home. No wonder Mr. Bean tells him, "Don't allow my animals to have firearms." Thereafter, Freddy shoots only blanks. Freddy learns through his adventures as a cowboy that "There are two ways of getting rid of people: one way is by shooting them; the other way is by making them look ridiculous." Freddy doesn't usually solve his problems with violence, and violent characters are usually villains. Freddy does learn how to look and act like a cowboy, but Brooks undercuts the violent core at the heart of the western genre in his novel's climactic show down, which takes place in the women's section of a department store and features strategically applied lipstick, rouge, eye shadow, and perfume.
Finally, despite all its good parts, Freddy the Cowboy is not as good as the best Freddy books (e.g., Freddy and the Clockwork Twin, Freddy the Politician, and Freddy and the Popinjay). There is some sloppy writing, like when Brooks authoritatively says that bats are not social animals, and then a few pages later has Sydney the bat recruit the aid of countless other bats because his many relatives are having a big reunion party type gathering, to which many other unrelated bats have invited themselves. And the middle part drags a bit. Still, below average Brooks and Freddy are much better than most other children's books, and anyone fond of vintage talking animal stories or children's literature written with style and wit (much of which is only appreciable to adults) should enjoy this book.
October 5, 2013
I do believe that this is my top pick for Freddy the pig. I love Jinks the cat and the cast of characters in the book! Jinks is my Favorite though. Freddy, now he gets his trotters into so many pies that you are amazed when it all turns out well. Freddy and the cowboy is rip roaring fun! Kids 8-12 will probably like this mystery.
June 9, 2010
I read the Freddy the pig books when I was a girl and I adored them -- unfortunately, I can't remember them at all -- probably because it was over 50 years ago.
November 16, 2017
Another fun Freddy book! They've all been favorites for my kids and I and this one was especially great. If you've never read any of the Freddy books, we definitely recommend them!
October 27, 2020
This is a cute but not entirely silly series
November 9, 2022
The climax here is particularly amusing. It's good, though it introduces and then just abandons rather too many characters.
August 11, 2023
A stone cold classic
April 14, 2024
As always Freddy bests the villains and saves the animals.
March 28, 2020
I began reading the "Freddy’ series as a reading-obsessed child, and still occasionally dip into it as a reading-obsessed old lady. At the time "Freddy the Cowboy" was published I resembled Richard in my willingness to give all that I had for a horse and the book resonated with me in a way now impossible to describe, much less replicate.
In retrospect it is easy to see that these stories were parables which taught moral values far more enjoyably than did Æsop and communicated ethical values far less didactically than does PETA. They had an incalculable impact on my evolving personality, and I would like to think that there are still animal-loving little girls out there who would love them as much as I did.
In retrospect it is easy to see that these stories were parables which taught moral values far more enjoyably than did Æsop and communicated ethical values far less didactically than does PETA. They had an incalculable impact on my evolving personality, and I would like to think that there are still animal-loving little girls out there who would love them as much as I did.
September 3, 2020
This is the second book from the Freddy series. I would recommend it because it was “clean” of bad words,etc. The main problem is that Mr Flint, the person who sold Freddy the horse, found out that the animals on Mr Bean’s farm have a bank and they try to rob it. This is a hilarious book that anyone would love.
February 12, 2019
I liked it. He's trying to catch Mr. Flint before he robs the bank. He buys a horse from Mr. Flint at the start of the book, but the horse bucks a lot when Mr. Flint rides it, but when Freddy rides it, it never bucks.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 7, 2009
I read several books from this series when I was a kid. They're a lot of fun. Very funny.
August 22, 2012
Such a fun lighthearted series! Jack (4) keeps asking me to read them out loud to him:)
March 2, 2020
Pb. 1987 reprint by Knopf. Orig publ. 1950.
October 9, 2019
I liked it. It was about Freddy and Mr. Flint who was trying to rob the First Animal Bank, but they make him so he doesn't.
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July 29, 2011These were my favorite books as a child!!!
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews