Reviews with content warning for Animal death - Old Yeller

Solid book, some big differences from the movie, which I saw first - it was a favorite of mine as a kid.

It's funny to consider the emotional norms of when this was written. Like listening to this book as an adult I'm like....yeah you beat the dog, no wonder it doesn't listen to you...

but in the end the bond between Travis and Ol' Yeller will still pull at heart strings. Idk if I like how drawn out the movie makes the ending vs how abrupt it is in the book...both hurt still

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bradburylogic's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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sknappy1's review against another edition

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challenging reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

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acedragonrider1's review against another edition

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medium-paced

2.0

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stephsbookreviews's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I have never read this before but obviously know the main plot point that happens. I finally decided to pick it up and was actually kind of disappointed. The overall story was fine but I didn't find it to pack the emotional punch that I was promised. I was warned that this was potentially more emotionally devastating than Where the Red Fern Grows and it wasn't even close. Sure, it was sad. But the sad part was a sentence. Given all of the warnings I received, I expected a lot more.

This book counts for Popsugar 2023 for a book I should have read in high school.

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miacorkum's review against another edition

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adventurous sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

3.25

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nimeneth's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

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mrs_gale's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Recommended to me by my Dad. A lovely classic and I'm so glad I read it!
We follow a young 14-year-old boy, Travis, dealing with the family farm in 1860 whilst his father is away for a few months. A stray dog appears one day and although Travis dislikes him the dog soon proves his worth.

I'm glad you are told the ending at the beginning, I think you could probably guess it anyway. I thought I'd cry and be heartbroken but I wasn't, Gipson handles it really well, especially in the talk Travis has with his father. A really great coming-of-age story, with a fair bit of action in such a short book. Really recommend!

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