wshier's review against another edition
4.0
One of the favorites of my youth re-read to my kids. It's still good.
kyliep's review against another edition
I loved these books as a child, but reading them now, I realize there’s very little plot, and a rather abrupt ending.
linopalve's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
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
5.0
spilt_moonlight's review against another edition
3.0
Someone mentioned this in a reddit thread about children book that're worth a second read. It's a pleasant read. Might read this to my kid later (much later).
q_tipsforsale's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
k_gauna's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
korikaboom's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
tommooney's review against another edition
3.0
MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN by Jean Craighead George. I would have lapped this up when I was 11 or 12 and I am gutted it has taken me this long to find it. It is Walden meets Animals of Farthing Wood and I can't wait to read it with my kids when they're a bit older.
kairosdreaming's review against another edition
3.0
I had just read some of the author's other works (Julie and the Wolves series) and had enjoyed them for the most part. So I decided to venture into some of her other books that didn't involve Julie. My Side of the Mountain, while interesting, only ranked average for me.
Sam is tired of his life in the city in a small apartment shared with many other siblings. He runs away from home and goes to some old family land in the Catskill mountains where he plans to live by himself and without any help except that he can find for himself in the wild. He spends his days looking for food and building shelter, and also training a very special falcon named Frightful to hunt for him. But he encounters visitors as one does anymore no matter where you go and he has to decide if he wants to let them into his life or not.
For characters, Sam is interesting but seems to be able to survive a little too well for his age. Things come a little easy and while I know this is a fictional kid's book, there has to be some reality. For example, this is what bothers me about the rest of the characters in this book. No one seems to have a problem with Sam running off and living in the wilderness on his own. I would think that at least one of the adults he encounters would have a problem with this and put a stop to it, but none every do. It is just hard for me to suspend belief for that.
This is a slow moving book and may not be appropriate for all children due to that or hold their attention. It does give a lot of good detail and information about the plants you can eat and other wilderness survival tactics. Whether or not this information is completely factual I cannot say as I don't know that much about it, but it sounded believable.
While I prefer her other works, I may check out the rest of this series. It would be interesting to see what happens to Sam and see if the books go to being more realistic.
My Side of the Mountain
Copyright 1959
177 pages
Review by M. Reynard 2011
Sam is tired of his life in the city in a small apartment shared with many other siblings. He runs away from home and goes to some old family land in the Catskill mountains where he plans to live by himself and without any help except that he can find for himself in the wild. He spends his days looking for food and building shelter, and also training a very special falcon named Frightful to hunt for him. But he encounters visitors as one does anymore no matter where you go and he has to decide if he wants to let them into his life or not.
For characters, Sam is interesting but seems to be able to survive a little too well for his age. Things come a little easy and while I know this is a fictional kid's book, there has to be some reality. For example, this is what bothers me about the rest of the characters in this book. No one seems to have a problem with Sam running off and living in the wilderness on his own. I would think that at least one of the adults he encounters would have a problem with this and put a stop to it, but none every do. It is just hard for me to suspend belief for that.
This is a slow moving book and may not be appropriate for all children due to that or hold their attention. It does give a lot of good detail and information about the plants you can eat and other wilderness survival tactics. Whether or not this information is completely factual I cannot say as I don't know that much about it, but it sounded believable.
While I prefer her other works, I may check out the rest of this series. It would be interesting to see what happens to Sam and see if the books go to being more realistic.
My Side of the Mountain
Copyright 1959
177 pages
Review by M. Reynard 2011
ralen356's review against another edition
... What is this.
I read the synopsis and expected this to be a heavy read. After all, the protagonist goes off to live by himself in the woods, which is a bad idea, and just full of potential for character growth. And what do I get? Details about a squirrel looking excited about nuts, a child fishing and failing I think four times, and a nonchalant father figure who thinks all boys should run away from home for the experience.
This book had no direction whatsoever. Is it an appreciation for nature? A how to guide on how to survive in the woods? A character growth arc about growing into a man? All the details, I think fell under these three categories, none of which seemed cohesive at all. Sure, all of these details could have come together to support what I thought was supposed to be an emotional coming of age story, but it didn't. First of all, a coming of age story needs a flawed character in order to create character growth. Did the book focus on the flaws of the character at all? Nope, but that squirrel is pretty cute. And just not a realistic observation from what's supposed to be a spoiled young boy who's running away from home. It was waaayyyyy too early to bring in the appreciation for nature stuff. For all I know, this kid is just sucks at survival skills, but for some reason is emotionally mature enough to appreciate the nature of beauty around him and emotionally immature enough to run away from home for the "experience". Running away from home isn't something you should do for fun. This kid is still in school, I assume, and is seriously ruining his life for an "experience". He doesn't even consider going home, and just ending whatever he's trying to do. I'm very much ticked off. I looked at some other reviews of this book, and found a detailed review sharing some of my thoughts, so I assume it won't get better.
I read the synopsis and expected this to be a heavy read. After all, the protagonist goes off to live by himself in the woods, which is a bad idea, and just full of potential for character growth. And what do I get? Details about a squirrel looking excited about nuts, a child fishing and failing I think four times, and a nonchalant father figure who thinks all boys should run away from home for the experience.
This book had no direction whatsoever. Is it an appreciation for nature? A how to guide on how to survive in the woods? A character growth arc about growing into a man? All the details, I think fell under these three categories, none of which seemed cohesive at all. Sure, all of these details could have come together to support what I thought was supposed to be an emotional coming of age story, but it didn't. First of all, a coming of age story needs a flawed character in order to create character growth. Did the book focus on the flaws of the character at all? Nope, but that squirrel is pretty cute. And just not a realistic observation from what's supposed to be a spoiled young boy who's running away from home. It was waaayyyyy too early to bring in the appreciation for nature stuff. For all I know, this kid is just sucks at survival skills, but for some reason is emotionally mature enough to appreciate the nature of beauty around him and emotionally immature enough to run away from home for the "experience". Running away from home isn't something you should do for fun. This kid is still in school, I assume, and is seriously ruining his life for an "experience". He doesn't even consider going home, and just ending whatever he's trying to do. I'm very much ticked off. I looked at some other reviews of this book, and found a detailed review sharing some of my thoughts, so I assume it won't get better.