Customer Reviews
It's historical fiction...not a minstrel show! 
2008-09-04
I just thought I should explain that clearly (hint, hint) after reading a few of the negative reviews. NOT a whole lot of singin' and dancin' going on in the south during Reconstruction, historically speaking that is. And this book doesn't make you feel "sad"...just oppressed...wait for it...ah, ha!...a masterpiece for all races, without a doubt. If younger readers don't get it, that might not be such a tragedy after all.
Just didn't do much for me. 
2008-07-18
William H. Armstrong, Sounder (Harper Collins, 1969)
Sounder is another book I read this year because I missed it when I was growing up; I somehow never had to read it for class when I was in school, and since my daughter did last year, I figured I'd give it a shot. And I had the same reaction as I did to the other book I read this year for the same reason (The House of Dies Drear)-- what's all the fuss about?
Sounder is the story of a boy and his dog. Early in the story, the boy's father is arrested for stealing a ham and carted away; as they're leaving, one of the policemen shoots the dog, who then disappears. Much of the rest of the book is spent on the unnamed boy searching for the dog, while learning to deal with having a father in prison and learning far more about the world than he ever wanted to know. So, in other words, not your normal a-boy-and-his-dog tale. Why I don't get what all the fuss is about is that books, especially those for younger readers, are supposed to be about character transformation; there can be no doubt that the subject of this book transforms, but there's no connecting the forces that cause him to transform (for none of it, as far as I could discern, comes from within; his transformation depends entirely on outward forces, which feels artificial) with his actual transformation except in the most basic, clumsy of ways. We don't actually see the boy transforming; we are given the forces, we cut to a later point in the story, and presto, the transformation has occurred without us having to see it-- or Armstrong having to write it.
None of this is to say it's necessarily a bad story. On its face, it works, and Armstrong keeps the pages turning. But in the greater scheme of things, it just seems to me there are a whole lot of books that handle everything here better; the obvious comparison is the superior Where the Red Fern Grows. It's not bad, but it's nothing special. ***
Sounder Review 
2008-05-18
The novel Sounder, by William Armstrong, depicts a story about a young boy, his family and his dog. The story is set in the early 19th century and most of the events occur in and around the families meager cabin house. The novel opens with a scene depicting the boy (whose name remains unknown throughout the novel) and his father, a struggling sharecropper. The boy's attachment to his family and love for his dog is clear in the early lines of the story.
Soon the families struggle to earn money and survive leads the father to steal a ham in a desperate attempt to put food on the table. The next morning, the police arrest the father. As he is taken away, the boy attempts to hold onto the dog, who is snarling and lunging at the police. As night falls, one of the police officers shoots the dog. He lies, seemingly dead, in the road as the mother quickly ushers her young children inside.
The story continues as the boy searches desperately for his dog. His hope that the dog survived the gunshot turns sour as weeks go by. One day, the dog miraculously reappears, with a wounded shoulder and missing eye. The boy and his mother are astonished to see the dog still alive, and take him back into their home.
The family soon learns about the fate of the father. After being locked up in the town prison, he has been released to do hard labor. The boy searches for his father, sometimes walking miles only to find a long line of laboring men he cannot recognize. After one visit, he stumbles upon a school and is taken in by the head teacher. The boy has a book with him and the teacher reads him part of the story. After this encounter, the boy decides to go away to school in the winters and stay back to help with the harvest in the summers.
The boy continued at the school for several years. One summer when he was home, Sounder came running up to the house, barking wildly. The father followed shortly behind, dragging his leg which had been destroyed when dynamite exploded in a prison quarry. Eventually, his broken body let go, and the father dies. Sounder dies shortly after his master.
Negative aspects:
While Sounder is an engaging novel, some of the language used is simple and may not challenge all students in the upper grades. The vocabulary is not overly difficult, yet might be on the correct level for some students. Lastly, because Sounder was written in 1969 and takes place in a old, country setting, students may have difficulty relating to the characters and making connections to their own lives. However, the themes of family, loss of a loved one (even a pet) and courage will engage students in the story.
I would recommend Sounder to any middle school teacher. The novel is interesting, engaging and generally easy to read. It would be perfect to implement in literature circles or as a whole-class novel, as students could read chapters on their own or at home.
One of the best dog books I've ever read 2008-04-24
Sounder is one of the best dog books I've ever read, even though there are some ups and downs in the plot. Comparing it to Shiloh and Because of Winn-Dixie, I realized sometimes ups and downs are good things. For example, in Shiloh it was always tense, and always what I call "up". In Sounder, though, there was calm "down" and tense "up". It is amazing how the author captures the reader's interest in a short story, whereas some longer books don't even get close to keeping the reader's nose in the book.
There were some slow parts, but on the other hand, it was a very good story, told very descriptively and in complete detail. The story starts out calmly, describing Sounder, a racoon or "coon" dog as the best, fastest, loudest and calmest of them all. The boy, his father a sharecropper, really wants to go hunting. The father doesn't allow him because it is cold and windy that night. The father says he won't have a good hunt anyway since the wind will blow away any animal scent. Later, the father steals a ham because his family is hungry and so poor. The father gets arrested for the theft, and the sheriff shoots Sounder in the process. Sounder crawls under the porch, and then isn't seen for a while. Finally, Sounder turns up, bone weary. The boy works in fields to earn money. The boy's father gets sent to many other jails across the state, so the boy sets out to find him. One day, the boy's father comes home. One whole side of him is distorted. That is because he got trapped beneath limestone while working in a prison quarry. Sounder is so happy to see his long-lost master that he lovingly welcomes him with a long bark: something he hadn't done in weeks. It was a very heartbreaking story.
A disappointing Newberry Winner 2007-10-30
The book "Sounder" was very depressing and at times annoying. It has no main characters besides Sounder and the boy. There are sad things in the story like when the boy's dad dies and a month later Sounder dies. The police were not nice either to the visitors. Once the boy went to the police to see his dad. His mom baked a cake to bring and the polic threw it on the ground and told him to pick it up. A guard threw a piece of metal and injured the boy's hand too. The only nice thing in the story is a school teacher that teaches the boy how to read and write. The ending left me sad and wishing for a happier story. However, all stories don't have to have a happy ending, if you're looking for a sad and realistic book this could be for you.
Sad but so sweet 2007-04-16
William H. Armstrong. A landmark in children's literature, winner of the 1970 Newbery Medal and the basis of an acclaimed film, Sounder traces the keen sorrow and the abiding faith of a poor African-American boy in the 19th-century South.
Sounder, not a good book 
2007-04-12
Sounder was not a good book. William Armstrong did not explain anything clearly. For example, nobody had names except for the dog. They were instead called the " The Man" or "The Mother." Also, everyone in the book was gloomy and sad and there was nothing good ever happening in the book. Another reason I didn't like this book was because the characters had no reaction. When something big would happen in the book they would just move on with life.
This story is about a poor boy and his family. His father is a sharecropper who struggles to feed his family. Every night the boys father and their great coon dog hunting but they've been getting nothing lately. One day, amazingly, there is a ham roasting on the stove. That day the boy's father is taken to jail and sounder goes missing. Soon enough the father is taken to jail and Sounder is still missing.
If you want to find out why sounder went away you have to read the book. Though I didn't like this book you might. If you love gloomy and sad books this is just for you.
Souder Stinks 2007-04-12
Sounder for me was a very disappointing and depressing book. It was not very descriptive, but it was very sad. For example, a part of the book is "The piece of iron lay on the inside of the fence. Drops of blood from his fingers dripped down the fence, wire by wire." You need to be in the mood for a sad story in order to read this book.
The people don't show any emotions. If anything bad happens, they don't try to fix it. If something good happens, which is rare, they act like they couldn't care less.
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The whole thing was very tragic and had an abrupt ending that had people wanting to know more, like about what happens to the boy when he grows up. The whole story was a fiasco and I would urge you to avoid reading this book.
Perseverance in Difficult Times 2007-04-02
Sometimes, we strive to achieve our goals and reach a point where exhaustion and opposition overwhelm us. We feel too tired to go on. However, if our want to succeed and gain pushes us onward, we persevere. Perseverance eventually brings success. In Sounder, by William H. Armstrong, each character reaches a point of despair and depletion. By showing perseverance, the characters, sooner or later, get through their situation successfully.
As a hard worker in the time subsequent to slavery, the boy in Sounder endured a lonely, fearful, and stressful life. He had to persevere because his family needed money. Their source of meat was scarce, and the boy's family lacked money to buy meat or anything else.
The father, therefore, stole a ham, for he had no other way to feed his family. A sheriff arrested the boy's father and shot his dog, Sounder, to prevent trouble. The shot wounded the dog so badly that he could no longer bark in the way that gave him his name.
Sounder was named after his unusual, sweet bark. It seemed to stretch out and roll in just the right way so that a listener would think someone was singing.
Now the boy had to fend for himself, his mother, younger siblings, and half-dead dog by working in the field and doing chores for white people to gain money.
The boy's father did not come home for a long time, so the boy went after him. After each search, the boy returned unsuccessful but endured and kept on.
The boy journeyed long and far to the prison farms, the jailhouse, and rock quarries to see his father, but he did not find him. Whenever he passed a white person's house, he thought he could feel their eyes staring at him through the curtains. Once, a white man threw a piece of iron at him. This was a blessing, though, because when the boy went to the schoolhouse to wash the cut the iron had caused, he met the schoolteacher who eventually taught him to read.
By the time the father finally returned, the boy was reading and had supported the family pretty well. The father had changed, however. His body had been damaged. He and Sounder had been hurt by the affects of slavery: racism and a system to keep blacks ignorant, poor, and dependant. However, their spirits of perseverance were not destroyed and the boy had hope of a better future because of his perseverance and education.
Through each of William H. Armstrong's characters, we can easily see that perseverance helps us overcome hardships. With perseverance, we can get past our limits into the world beyond.
a mut of a dog 2007-03-30
I think this book is a good book for the type of person that has an interest in "tear jerker" stories. It is the perfect snow daybook. The way the author writes makes you feel as if you are really there. He uses great imagery and descriptive words. Personally I am a little bit old for this book but it is still is a great story. It has an easy plot to follow and a great story line. This is the kind that you need to really read in between the lines. If you do not understand a sentence read it over and over and over again until you do! The reason is, is because one thing can throw you off! This is an awesome book and I am a big fan of this author. This is a book that teaches you great morals, but I am not going to tell you them! If you want to know what the morals are you will have to read to find out!
