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The Bedtime Story Books
The Adventures of Paddy the Beaver
As this delightful story opens, something strange is going on! The waters of the Laughing Brook and Smiling Pool have become a mere trickle, causing alarm among the creatures of the Green Forest.
It seems Jerry Muskrat's cousin, Paddy the Beaver, has come south to make himself a new home. That means he had to stop the waters that flowed in the Laughing Brook and Smiling Pool to make a fine new pond for himself and a comfortable home of sticks and mud. But what will happen to the waterways in the Green Forest?Young readers will find out in this charming tale of woodland adventure, as the gentle, good-natured beaver wins over scolding Sammy Jay and the two work together to outsmart Old Man Coyote.This timeless story, with original illustrations by Harrison Cady, not only entertains young readers and listeners, it also imparts valuable lessons about friendship, trust, and respect for the environment.
It seems Jerry Muskrat's cousin, Paddy the Beaver, has come south to make himself a new home. That means he had to stop the waters that flowed in the Laughing Brook and Smiling Pool to make a fine new pond for himself and a comfortable home of sticks and mud. But what will happen to the waterways in the Green Forest?Young readers will find out in this charming tale of woodland adventure, as the gentle, good-natured beaver wins over scolding Sammy Jay and the two work together to outsmart Old Man Coyote.This timeless story, with original illustrations by Harrison Cady, not only entertains young readers and listeners, it also imparts valuable lessons about friendship, trust, and respect for the environment.
80 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1878
24 people are currently reading
303 people want to read
About the author
Thornton W. Burgess
824 books203 followersThornton W. (Waldo) Burgess (1874-1965), American author, naturalist and conservationist, wrote popular children's stories including the Old Mother West Wind (1910) series. He would go on to write more than 100 books and thousands of short-stories during his lifetime.
Thornton Burgess loved the beauty of nature and its living creatures so much that he wrote about them for 50 years in books and his newspaper column, "Bedtime Stories". He was sometimes known as the Bedtime Story-Man. By the time he retired, he had written more than 170 books and 15,000 stories for the daily newspaper column.
Born in Sandwich, Massachusetts, Burgess was the son of Caroline F. Haywood and Thornton W. Burgess Sr., a direct descendant of Thomas Burgess, one of the first Sandwich settlers in 1637. Thornton W. Burgess, Sr., died the same year his son was born, and the young Thornton Burgess was brought up by his mother in Sandwich. They both lived in humble circumstances with relatives or paying rent. As a youth, he worked year round in order to earn money. Some of his jobs included tending cows, picking trailing arbutus or berries, shipping water lilies from local ponds, selling candy and trapping muskrats. William C. Chipman, one of his employers, lived on Discovery Hill Road, a wildlife habitat of woodland and wetland. This habitat became the setting of many stories in which Burgess refers to Smiling Pool and the Old Briar Patch.
Graduating from Sandwich High School in 1891, Burgess briefly attended a business college in Boston from 1892 to 1893, living in Somerville, Massachusetts, at that time. But he disliked studying business and wanted to write. He moved to Springfield, Massachusetts, where he took a job as an editorial assistant at the Phelps Publishing Company. His first stories were written under the pen name W. B. Thornton.
Burgess married Nina Osborne in 1905, but she died only a year later, leaving him to raise their son alone. It is said that he began writing bedtime stories to entertain his young son, Thornton III. Burgess remarried in 1911; his wife Fannie had two children by a previous marriage. The couple later bought a home in Hampden, Massachusetts, in 1925 that became Burgess' permanent residence in 1957. His second wife died in August 1950. Burgess returned frequently to Sandwich, which he always claimed as his birthplace and spiritual home.
In 1960, Burgess published his last book, "Now I Remember, Autobiography of an Amateur Naturalist," depicting memories of his early life in Sandwich, as well as his career highlights. That same year, Burgess, at the age of 86, had published his 15,000th story. He died on June 5, 1965, at the age of 91 in Hampden, Massachusetts.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
December 15, 2023
I've really enjoyed rereading these stories that my father used to read to my brother and I when we were kids. My boys (now men) never really took to these books. However, I undertook to read all of these books before I eliminated them from my Kindle. There are 19 books in the Bedtime Storybook collection written by Thornton W. Burgess and illustrated wonderfully by Harrison Cady. This is book #15.
Paddy Beaver is a new resident of the Green Forest, Green Meadow milieu choosing to make his home in the Smiling Pool, Laughing Brook area. Paddy is a diligent and conscientious worker, who works hard at constructing a dam that doubles as his home. He is careful not to cut down more trees than he needs to fortify his constructs, knowing that if he thins the forest too much by his home, he is harming not only his surroundings but other critters indigenous to the forest.
Despite the similarity to the other adventures, Paddy is unique in the sense of making deliberate, moral choices that impact not just his own existence, but his environment as well -- consisting of flora and fauna. I love how he outsmarts Old Man Coyote, befriends Sammy Jay (a potential enemy), and assists other beasties. Definitely a really good book in my opinion. Highly recommended.
Paddy Beaver is a new resident of the Green Forest, Green Meadow milieu choosing to make his home in the Smiling Pool, Laughing Brook area. Paddy is a diligent and conscientious worker, who works hard at constructing a dam that doubles as his home. He is careful not to cut down more trees than he needs to fortify his constructs, knowing that if he thins the forest too much by his home, he is harming not only his surroundings but other critters indigenous to the forest.
Despite the similarity to the other adventures, Paddy is unique in the sense of making deliberate, moral choices that impact not just his own existence, but his environment as well -- consisting of flora and fauna. I love how he outsmarts Old Man Coyote, befriends Sammy Jay (a potential enemy), and assists other beasties. Definitely a really good book in my opinion. Highly recommended.
September 18, 2017
I really liked this short children's book about a beaver. It is a good example of how a story can teach children about nature without becoming too theoretical. Essentially it is just a fun story. It has humor, some action, and some very well thought out image of the animals.
Burgess explains what the beaver is doing by building a dam , and so on, but does it by intergrating the information into the narrative. He does this so well that the story flows naturally. It may be a little slow, but I like it. I think it has aged rather well.
Burgess explains what the beaver is doing by building a dam , and so on, but does it by intergrating the information into the narrative. He does this so well that the story flows naturally. It may be a little slow, but I like it. I think it has aged rather well.
October 16, 2022
'Work, work all night/While the stars are shining bright;/Work, work, all the day;/I have got no time to play' was a little rhyme that Paddy the Beaver sang as he toiled at building the dam which was to make the pond that he so much desired deep in the Green Forest. The rhyme wasn't quite true because, of course, he had to rest and sleep as well. Even so of all the workers in the Green Forest, in the Green Meadow and in the Smiling Pool none of the other animals could compare with Paddy the Beaver. Even though his cousin Jerry Muskrat was a diligent worker he did not compare to Paddy!
He worked hard on the aspen trees and making those he felled into strips for his dam. He dragged them from the wood to the stream and then set about building. While he was doing this Sammy Jay continually shouted 'Thief, thief! You're stealing our trees' at him but Paddy told him that he had as much right to them as Sammy did to eat the acorns that fell in the autumn. Jerry told Paddy to ignore Sammy as he was the greatest mischief maker in the Green Forest.
Other of Paddy's friends came to watch his endeavour but there was one mischief maker who wanted to wreck the whole project and in the process feast himself on Paddy. And that was Old Man Coyote, who did everything he could to catch Paddy when he was collecting the wood for the dam and then for the house he was to build in the pond that he created.
But Old Man Coyote did not work out Paddy's work schedule as well as he could have done and Paddy out-foxed him! And even though at one point Sammy and Jerry were wondering if what Paddy was building in the pond would meet his requirements, Paddy knew exactly what he was doing. And with overhead help from Sammy, who kept watch for him his plans eventually cameto fruition.
Lovely coloured illustrations from Harrison Cady accompany the text.
He worked hard on the aspen trees and making those he felled into strips for his dam. He dragged them from the wood to the stream and then set about building. While he was doing this Sammy Jay continually shouted 'Thief, thief! You're stealing our trees' at him but Paddy told him that he had as much right to them as Sammy did to eat the acorns that fell in the autumn. Jerry told Paddy to ignore Sammy as he was the greatest mischief maker in the Green Forest.
Other of Paddy's friends came to watch his endeavour but there was one mischief maker who wanted to wreck the whole project and in the process feast himself on Paddy. And that was Old Man Coyote, who did everything he could to catch Paddy when he was collecting the wood for the dam and then for the house he was to build in the pond that he created.
But Old Man Coyote did not work out Paddy's work schedule as well as he could have done and Paddy out-foxed him! And even though at one point Sammy and Jerry were wondering if what Paddy was building in the pond would meet his requirements, Paddy knew exactly what he was doing. And with overhead help from Sammy, who kept watch for him his plans eventually cameto fruition.
Lovely coloured illustrations from Harrison Cady accompany the text.
August 10, 2021
Cute book...
February 13, 2018
Thornton W. Burgess used his animal tales to educate children about the ways of animals and teach life lessons. The amusing stories of various creatures of the forest make for charming tales that are so fun and interesting that the children of yesteryear may not have even noticed that they were learning a few things.
Burgess's The Adventures of Paddy the Beaver (1917) is no different. Paddy moves to the Green Woods and sets about making a home for himself. First he must build a dam and create a pond big enough to hold his lodge. All the creatures who live in the wood are curious about their new neighbor and come to watch him work. His cousin Jerry Muskrat doesn't understand his building methods and is quite sure he's doing it all wrong. But nothing bothers Paddy--not even Ol' Mr. Coyote who stalks the banks at night hoping for a tasty beaver sandwich--and soon they all find out what kind of builder Paddy is.
Burgess's story gives accurate information about how beavers build their dams and homes; what beavers like best to eat; what their habits are; and how they are related to other woodland animals. He also sprinkles the story with little morals like
...when Paddy begins work, he sticks to it until it is finished. He says that is the only way to succeed, and you know and I know that he is right.
So now he knew just what to do and the best way of doing it. You know a great many people waste time and labor doing things the wrong way, so they have to be done over again. They forget to be sure they are right, and so they go ahead until they find they are wrong, and all their work goes for nothing.
You see, Paddy was much bigger than most of the little meadow and forest people, and they didn't know what kind of a temper he might have. It is always safest to be very distrustful of strangers...So now he was perfectly willing to go right on working and let his hidden visitors watch him until they were sure that he meant them no harm.
He also teaches children about friendship. Showing them that (in the case of Sammy Jay), the best way to have a friend is to be one.
This is a lovely vintage children's book--on that I bought primarily because it's about a beaver. I collect beavers (stuffed animals, figurines, Christmas ornaments, books...) in short because my name means "beaver meadow." Burgess has a series of these books that feature various animals and I'm quite sure they would all be just as charming.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.
Burgess's The Adventures of Paddy the Beaver (1917) is no different. Paddy moves to the Green Woods and sets about making a home for himself. First he must build a dam and create a pond big enough to hold his lodge. All the creatures who live in the wood are curious about their new neighbor and come to watch him work. His cousin Jerry Muskrat doesn't understand his building methods and is quite sure he's doing it all wrong. But nothing bothers Paddy--not even Ol' Mr. Coyote who stalks the banks at night hoping for a tasty beaver sandwich--and soon they all find out what kind of builder Paddy is.
Burgess's story gives accurate information about how beavers build their dams and homes; what beavers like best to eat; what their habits are; and how they are related to other woodland animals. He also sprinkles the story with little morals like
...when Paddy begins work, he sticks to it until it is finished. He says that is the only way to succeed, and you know and I know that he is right.
So now he knew just what to do and the best way of doing it. You know a great many people waste time and labor doing things the wrong way, so they have to be done over again. They forget to be sure they are right, and so they go ahead until they find they are wrong, and all their work goes for nothing.
You see, Paddy was much bigger than most of the little meadow and forest people, and they didn't know what kind of a temper he might have. It is always safest to be very distrustful of strangers...So now he was perfectly willing to go right on working and let his hidden visitors watch him until they were sure that he meant them no harm.
He also teaches children about friendship. Showing them that (in the case of Sammy Jay), the best way to have a friend is to be one.
This is a lovely vintage children's book--on that I bought primarily because it's about a beaver. I collect beavers (stuffed animals, figurines, Christmas ornaments, books...) in short because my name means "beaver meadow." Burgess has a series of these books that feature various animals and I'm quite sure they would all be just as charming.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.
February 18, 2025
Words, language and the beauty of a story well told has been all but lost on the contemporary reader, myself included! I was reminded of this as I listened to this delightful tale narrated by a lovely trained reader whose interpretation of these animal adventures took me to a beautiful green forest where well designed animal characters live.
I did not know to appreciate such literature when I was a child and even as a young mother but now, as I peruse children's libraries with my grandchildren, I am struck by how we have lost the love and appreciation for the beauty of well crafted words as we spin tales for children. How has this happened? Must we return to literature written in the early 20th century? If so, I highly recommend these Thornton W. Burgess's animal adventures! We can be thankful that this gifted children's author wrote over 170 book in his lifetime!
I did not know to appreciate such literature when I was a child and even as a young mother but now, as I peruse children's libraries with my grandchildren, I am struck by how we have lost the love and appreciation for the beauty of well crafted words as we spin tales for children. How has this happened? Must we return to literature written in the early 20th century? If so, I highly recommend these Thornton W. Burgess's animal adventures! We can be thankful that this gifted children's author wrote over 170 book in his lifetime!
January 24, 2020
It's been a rough week - family member out of commission from a bacterial infection and the Senate out of commission from a Putin infection. All I had time and energy for reading the past few days was this little treasure from childhood, that sits on the tiny child-sized bookshelf from my childhood along with many other well-loved and well-read books of my early years.
This particular book I believe I only read once or twice as a child. I didn't remember much about it until I got to the part where Farmer Brown's son's dog Bowser is chasing Peter Rabbit, who takes off across Paddy's dam, lands in the water, has to swim for shore, and then "didn't waste any time, but started for home as fast as he could go, lipperty-lipperty-lip." I had a memory of encountering that "lipperty-lipperty-lip" for the first time, knowing they weren't "real" words, but also knowing exactly what they meant, and delighting in their sound (internal, as I read) and their perfect description of a rabbit on the move.
I believe I found this book somewhat dull and preachy as a child, otherwise I'd have read it over more times. I also remember being puzzled and somewhat bothered that there were illustrations in various places that did not seem to match the action of the story (for example, at the end of the chapter "Old Man Coyote Tries Another Plan" there is an illustration of the coyote in a dress and apron, carrying a purse and umbrella, and wearing spectacles, a la the big bad wolf dressed as grandmother. Nothing at all in the action of the story supports this illustration.) I remain bothered by these inscrutable illustrations. Children deserve more respect than to just slap any old whimsical drawing of a animal in human clothing into a book about anthropomorphized critters. I'm talking to you, Harrison Cady (illustrator).
However I thoroughly enjoyed the book this week as an adult - the story of an industrious beaver who is careful to do everything well and right, makes a friend by being a friend, and who doesn't take more than he needs because "Enough is enough". Not a bad example for all of us to take to heart in these times.
This particular book I believe I only read once or twice as a child. I didn't remember much about it until I got to the part where Farmer Brown's son's dog Bowser is chasing Peter Rabbit, who takes off across Paddy's dam, lands in the water, has to swim for shore, and then "didn't waste any time, but started for home as fast as he could go, lipperty-lipperty-lip." I had a memory of encountering that "lipperty-lipperty-lip" for the first time, knowing they weren't "real" words, but also knowing exactly what they meant, and delighting in their sound (internal, as I read) and their perfect description of a rabbit on the move.
I believe I found this book somewhat dull and preachy as a child, otherwise I'd have read it over more times. I also remember being puzzled and somewhat bothered that there were illustrations in various places that did not seem to match the action of the story (for example, at the end of the chapter "Old Man Coyote Tries Another Plan" there is an illustration of the coyote in a dress and apron, carrying a purse and umbrella, and wearing spectacles, a la the big bad wolf dressed as grandmother. Nothing at all in the action of the story supports this illustration.) I remain bothered by these inscrutable illustrations. Children deserve more respect than to just slap any old whimsical drawing of a animal in human clothing into a book about anthropomorphized critters. I'm talking to you, Harrison Cady (illustrator).
However I thoroughly enjoyed the book this week as an adult - the story of an industrious beaver who is careful to do everything well and right, makes a friend by being a friend, and who doesn't take more than he needs because "Enough is enough". Not a bad example for all of us to take to heart in these times.
April 16, 2024
Read aloud with Notgrass Our 50 States. Kids loved it. I liked it. Good moral lesson.
May 10, 2024
Cute little chapter book. My 3rd grader enjoyed it.
January 1, 2023
Love the Thornton Burgess books. Caleb will listen to these on repeat all day if I let him. (Audio on CanonPlus)
May 9, 2024
Read with my 4 year old
June 30, 2025
I love how this book teaches so much about how beavers build their dams and store their food.
January 31, 2011
The Burgess Books
This is a phrase that brings a smile to my face as often as I hear it. As a young child, I would lose myself for hours in the simple world of the wood and pond inhabited by Little Joe Otter, Buster Bear, Grandfather Frog, and terrorized by Farmer Brown's Boy. I can remember the very shelf, even the exact spot in the little library in Felton, CA where these books were kept. I would return practically every week with a new armload to last me until our next trip to the library. Often I would carry out stories that I read several times before, just so I could once again escape into this imaginary world of furry mischief.
I remember these books well in concept, though the specifics of most of the stories elude me. It was easily fifteen years ago when I began reading them and has been over a decade since I last picked up one of Burguess' stories to read it. That being said, this review is being written as a look back.
These stories are very simple and very fun. Of course, they are children's literature, so that's to be expected, but these stories strike me as especially so. Even still, I can remember some fascinating things I gleaned between the their covers.
For one thing, Burgess did a fantastic job of presenting the ideas of persepective and motivation in simplistic terms. For example, "The Adventures of Danny Field Mouse" would cast Old Man Coyote as a vicious, mean creature wishing to prey on Danny and his friends and family. Yet, pick up instead "The Adventures of Old Man Coyote" and you'll see that when the story is told with him as the protagonist, those pesky field mice are annoying and useful for little more than a snack. After reading both books, you're no more inclined to think of Old Man Coyote as a villian than you are to think of Danny Field Mouse as a pest that should be exterminated. (Note: This is a generic example. I do not recall if Old Man Coyote plays a role in Danny Field Mouse's story or the other way around, but this concept was presented several times. It made an impression on me.)
The only characters consistantly presented as antagonists were Farmer Brown and his boy. This would be one of the only things that I chalk up as odd, or maybe just a little "off" in these books. Humans and their influence on nature are presented as a negative influence on nature and animals - always. It's interesting to note though that while humans are seen as a negative, humanity is lauded and held up as virtuous. All of the animals take on not only human personalities but characteristics, traits, and mannerisms. From a frog with a monocle and an otter with a handkerchief tied to a stick, to a busy-body Jay and a reclusive owl who desires only to be left alone, humanity and it's traits keep cropping up.
Which would be another thing of value I feel that I saw in the Burgess books. These stories are full of social interaction and personality conflicts, even if they are charicatured more often than not. We see over and over again a working out of peace, if not harmony, between conflicting personalities. It may not always be easy to point out a scripture to reinforce the lesson implied, but social harmony is presented and more often than not, resolution is through reconciliation, forgiveness, or a similar method that is not only laudable, but distinctly Christian in action if not motivation.
All in all, the world created by Thornton W. Burgess is imaginative, innocent, fun, and educational. My reccomendation? Grab a handful from your local library, gather a group of kids as an excuse, and lose yourselves in childhood imaginations as you read aloud the stories that have captivated several generations of young readers with the antics of our furry, albiet elusively human, friends.
(Disclaimers: As I said, it has been over a decade since I actually read one of Burgess' books. As such, there may be a specific example that's a little off in this review or something that I would have noticed as an adult that my childhood memories are missing. Also, all of these books say I read them in 1998. While I'm certain I read several of them that year, I'm sure I read some before and after that date as well.)
This is a phrase that brings a smile to my face as often as I hear it. As a young child, I would lose myself for hours in the simple world of the wood and pond inhabited by Little Joe Otter, Buster Bear, Grandfather Frog, and terrorized by Farmer Brown's Boy. I can remember the very shelf, even the exact spot in the little library in Felton, CA where these books were kept. I would return practically every week with a new armload to last me until our next trip to the library. Often I would carry out stories that I read several times before, just so I could once again escape into this imaginary world of furry mischief.
I remember these books well in concept, though the specifics of most of the stories elude me. It was easily fifteen years ago when I began reading them and has been over a decade since I last picked up one of Burguess' stories to read it. That being said, this review is being written as a look back.
These stories are very simple and very fun. Of course, they are children's literature, so that's to be expected, but these stories strike me as especially so. Even still, I can remember some fascinating things I gleaned between the their covers.
For one thing, Burgess did a fantastic job of presenting the ideas of persepective and motivation in simplistic terms. For example, "The Adventures of Danny Field Mouse" would cast Old Man Coyote as a vicious, mean creature wishing to prey on Danny and his friends and family. Yet, pick up instead "The Adventures of Old Man Coyote" and you'll see that when the story is told with him as the protagonist, those pesky field mice are annoying and useful for little more than a snack. After reading both books, you're no more inclined to think of Old Man Coyote as a villian than you are to think of Danny Field Mouse as a pest that should be exterminated. (Note: This is a generic example. I do not recall if Old Man Coyote plays a role in Danny Field Mouse's story or the other way around, but this concept was presented several times. It made an impression on me.)
The only characters consistantly presented as antagonists were Farmer Brown and his boy. This would be one of the only things that I chalk up as odd, or maybe just a little "off" in these books. Humans and their influence on nature are presented as a negative influence on nature and animals - always. It's interesting to note though that while humans are seen as a negative, humanity is lauded and held up as virtuous. All of the animals take on not only human personalities but characteristics, traits, and mannerisms. From a frog with a monocle and an otter with a handkerchief tied to a stick, to a busy-body Jay and a reclusive owl who desires only to be left alone, humanity and it's traits keep cropping up.
Which would be another thing of value I feel that I saw in the Burgess books. These stories are full of social interaction and personality conflicts, even if they are charicatured more often than not. We see over and over again a working out of peace, if not harmony, between conflicting personalities. It may not always be easy to point out a scripture to reinforce the lesson implied, but social harmony is presented and more often than not, resolution is through reconciliation, forgiveness, or a similar method that is not only laudable, but distinctly Christian in action if not motivation.
All in all, the world created by Thornton W. Burgess is imaginative, innocent, fun, and educational. My reccomendation? Grab a handful from your local library, gather a group of kids as an excuse, and lose yourselves in childhood imaginations as you read aloud the stories that have captivated several generations of young readers with the antics of our furry, albiet elusively human, friends.
(Disclaimers: As I said, it has been over a decade since I actually read one of Burgess' books. As such, there may be a specific example that's a little off in this review or something that I would have noticed as an adult that my childhood memories are missing. Also, all of these books say I read them in 1998. While I'm certain I read several of them that year, I'm sure I read some before and after that date as well.)
August 16, 2020
3.5 stars & 4/10 hearts. This is a nostalgic read for me, since it’s one of the first books I read. It’s humorous, it’s got good lessons, and it’s got a touch of suspense as well.
A Favourite Quote: “Sammy is so used to hearing bad things about himself that to hear something nice like that pleased him immensely. ... He forgot how Paddy had made him the laughingstock of the Green Forest and the Green Meadows by cutting down the very tree in which he had been sitting. He forgot everything but that Paddy had trusted him to keep watch and now was saying nice things about him. He made up his mind that he would deserve all the nice things that Paddy could say, and he thought that Paddy was the finest fellow in the world.”
A Favourite Humorous Quote: “‘Hello, Mr. Jay. I see you haven't any better manners than your cousin who lives up where I come from,’ said [Paddy].
“‘Thief! thief! thief!’ screamed Sammy, hopping up and down, he was so angry.
“‘Meaning yourself, I suppose,’ said Paddy. ‘I never did see an honest Jay, and I don't suppose I ever will.’”
A Favourite Quote: “Sammy is so used to hearing bad things about himself that to hear something nice like that pleased him immensely. ... He forgot how Paddy had made him the laughingstock of the Green Forest and the Green Meadows by cutting down the very tree in which he had been sitting. He forgot everything but that Paddy had trusted him to keep watch and now was saying nice things about him. He made up his mind that he would deserve all the nice things that Paddy could say, and he thought that Paddy was the finest fellow in the world.”
A Favourite Humorous Quote: “‘Hello, Mr. Jay. I see you haven't any better manners than your cousin who lives up where I come from,’ said [Paddy].
“‘Thief! thief! thief!’ screamed Sammy, hopping up and down, he was so angry.
“‘Meaning yourself, I suppose,’ said Paddy. ‘I never did see an honest Jay, and I don't suppose I ever will.’”
January 16, 2018
Classic, wholesome, and under-discovered
Unless my grandmother had read these to me as a boy I don’t think I would have ever been exposed to this treasure of Americana. Easy to read with characters that kids love to hear about and closely relate to, the stories emphasize traditional values of hard work, respect for others, self reliance, and the like. Burgess’s anthropomorphic characters embody the innocence and purity of youth and a past Golden Age. Perhaps it’s nostalgia, but modern children’s books don’t reflect the same level of craft that these tales do. Anyone with kids not yet teens would likely enjoy reading this book to them or anything else by T. W. Burgess.
Unless my grandmother had read these to me as a boy I don’t think I would have ever been exposed to this treasure of Americana. Easy to read with characters that kids love to hear about and closely relate to, the stories emphasize traditional values of hard work, respect for others, self reliance, and the like. Burgess’s anthropomorphic characters embody the innocence and purity of youth and a past Golden Age. Perhaps it’s nostalgia, but modern children’s books don’t reflect the same level of craft that these tales do. Anyone with kids not yet teens would likely enjoy reading this book to them or anything else by T. W. Burgess.
June 18, 2021
I picked up this cute little book from a used book store while on vacation last year in North Carolina. It was mostly enjoyable and a great way to teach some moral lessons to children while also teaching about the forest and animals. Although full of great information, it was a little boring at times and actually fairly lengthy (68 pages and reads like a novella) for a children’s book. This was written in 1917, and I wonder how much we regressed in reading skills if this was the standard for children then. It’s interesting to think how children responded to this back in 1917 as opposed to how they would respond now.
October 16, 2019
This sweet story about Paddy the Beaver teaches about the value of hard work and also about friendship. There is no striking plot, other than building a beaver dam, but the descriptive story explains Paddy's hard work in preparation for winter. Kids will learn about the animals as well as appreciate their delightful characteristics. When we started it, I thought my son might not appreciate some of the older sentence structure or the lack of plot, but he loved it and we have moved on to other books by Burgess.
October 30, 2018
This one had a little longer chapters than others I've read. Ends on a good note and doesn't setup another book which would be nice for a stand alone book when you don't want to reread the whole series. It is a different story than the Adventures of Jerry Muskrat which had introduced Paddy to us originally. I was glad this one had him staying in the Green Forrest. We enjoyed it.
August 18, 2019
I loved all of these books when I was a kid. My mother read them to us. I bought a bunch, intending to read them to my kids, but they didn't really ever like them. Oh well. I have always enjoyed the stories of how the animals interact with each other, and the tricks they play on each other, and how they play out the roles of predator and prey but in a fun, child-safe way.
January 31, 2022
Fun, cute, gentle, low-stakes animal stories with some light moralizing about hard work, trustworthiness, friendship, and the power of a soft answer to turn away wrath. The descriptions and personalities of the animals are all clearly based on close observation of their actual behavior in the wild, which made this extra fun for the kids.
September 12, 2018
Another great Thornton Burgess book read aloud with my sons! This one I liked especially because one of its major themes is working together/helping others. It also shows how determination and focus are good character traits as well!
March 11, 2021
The best part of this book was learning so much about beavers. Burgess did a particularly good job with the educational component of this one. The story itself wasn’t much, though it was nice to see Sammy Jay being a bit less of a jerk.
April 3, 2022
My kids loved it. Which cracked me up. I think the stories are all those old fashioned with a moral in every chapter, not particularly going anywhere with the plot, kind of book. But they gave it 5 stars....
Good for kindergarten and up.
Good for kindergarten and up.
April 7, 2022
We have actually read a number of these little stories about the creatures in the Green Forest, Green Meadows, Smiling Pond and Farmer Brown’s farm, pastures, and orchard. They are all very cute and good re-alouds.
April 30, 2019
Wonderful tale.
July 8, 2019
I liked when they were building a water path, Sammy Jay was helping. Done.
October 30, 2019
It was a great book especially for children. The author has the personalities down when it comes to the animal characters. Enjoyable
June 7, 2021
I learned things I did not know about beavers!
March 5, 2022
The Thornton Burgess animal books are a delight. It’s been many many years since I read them but I found the collection at my parents’ house and was reminded of hours of enjoyment as a child
February 9, 2023
A classic children’s story. My kindergartener enjoyed it. Fairly slow moving.
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