Helpful Score: 3
A well-written story, yes, but I detested it because of the ending, which I only wish I could forget. I would never read the book again, as it adds nothing to my knowledge, my inner peace and happiness, or my hopes for mankind. IMHO, there is enough misery in the world without young people having their noses being rubbed in it in the name of growing up and of being realistic.
Helpful Score: 2
I hated this book. To me, it is an example of one modern approach to children's books that finds value in depicting ugly and cruel things in the name of realism. True to some people's lives, it may be, but the ending, which I presume the author and some others consider to be a fine resolution, made me almost sick. I read the book too long ago to recall many details, but whenever I see it mentioned, I feel sadness, anger, and disdain.
Helpful Score: 1
Oh you know whats going to happen a few pages in, but think maybe not! I love books about families struggling to get by, but they never see it as struggling. My 15 yr old daughter also read this, and really enjoyed it.
Helpful Score: 1
This simply-written Young Adult story is a good read for any age. The first person perspective puts the reader inside the mind of a 12-year-old boy growing up on a Vermont farm. The matter-of-fact transparency of the narration portrays innocence, humor, and the character's journey from boy to responsible "grown-up."
Helpful Score: 1
I first read this book back when I was in the seventh grade for an English assignment. I really enjoyed it! I cried in the end. It was very touching. Then many years later, in my twenties, I thought of this book. I remembered I had like it, but couldn't really remember what happened so I went out, bought it, and reread it. I still found it enjoyable. A good book for young adults and up.
A good story, but sad! I read it in two days!
This is one of the first book that when i was in school was introduced to me that got me hooked on reading
A novel about a boyhood on a vermont farm, thye love between a father and son, and a coming to manhood, that is the most loving book.
As they say "life ain't fair" and this book proves it. Or does it? Young Rob learns at a very young age that life, no matter how ufair, is still life. Things grow, things die and most of the time we don't get to say how or where. I read this book at least once a year. In a way it puts life into perspective for me. Don't take anything for granted no matter how small or meaningless it seems. Especially a flutter-wheel.
This is a classic, written by Robert Newton Peck. The back of the book explains it quite well: "It is a timeless story of a Shaker boy, his beloved pet pig, and the joys and hardships that mark his passage into manhood."
From AudioFile
It's a delicate business to present a character who speaks in dialect, and Terry Bregy does a craggy and credible job as Robert's stern but loving Vermont Shaker father. Robert himself is presented with two separate voices. The first speaker is the man reliving the time during which he came to understand the joy and sorrow of life; the second is the boy who is the only surviving son of a dying father. Bregy is able to convey a sense of age and experience as well as a sense of innocence. His reading draws the listener into the continuing debate about traditional values. This is very good recording of a powerful book. L.S. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.
Review
Reading this book is like sipping hot cider in front of a crackling potbellied stove. Every page is suffused with wit and charm and glowing with warmth.Newsweek
A lovely book. . . . Honest, moving, homely in the warm and simple sense of the word. . . . It is small, accepting and loving and it succeeds perfectly.Boston Globe
Youll find yourself caught up in the novels emotion from the very opening scene. . . . Love suffuses every page.The New York Times
It's a delicate business to present a character who speaks in dialect, and Terry Bregy does a craggy and credible job as Robert's stern but loving Vermont Shaker father. Robert himself is presented with two separate voices. The first speaker is the man reliving the time during which he came to understand the joy and sorrow of life; the second is the boy who is the only surviving son of a dying father. Bregy is able to convey a sense of age and experience as well as a sense of innocence. His reading draws the listener into the continuing debate about traditional values. This is very good recording of a powerful book. L.S. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.
Review
Reading this book is like sipping hot cider in front of a crackling potbellied stove. Every page is suffused with wit and charm and glowing with warmth.Newsweek
A lovely book. . . . Honest, moving, homely in the warm and simple sense of the word. . . . It is small, accepting and loving and it succeeds perfectly.Boston Globe
Youll find yourself caught up in the novels emotion from the very opening scene. . . . Love suffuses every page.The New York Times
If you like Charlotte's Web, you'll love this classic.
This was a great story to listen to with my 13 year old.
The novel about a boyhood on a Vermont farm, the love between a father and a son, and a coming to manhood, that is the most moving book of the year...
Three tapes. Originally came with a "study guide" with vocabulary words, questions for thought.
Loved the book, loved having it read to us (me and the kids).
Loved the book, loved having it read to us (me and the kids).
Title: A Day No Pigs Would Die By Robert Newton Peck Laurel-Leaf Historical Fiction
