Customer Reviews
A marvelous book of a boy and his dog 
2007-11-17
When my sibling and I were children more than once our mother read this book aloud to us. Chapters were doled out carefully and we each had our favorite. Mutt's determination to level the playing field by fence walking like the neighborhood cats, was my favorite.
Yes, you could call this book dated. It was written about a time in the past (1930's in Saskatoon, Canada) but it has the universal themes of relationships, discovery and the sadness of parting. That is what makes it relevant to young readers today. Set aside your 21st century 'tsk, tsk' about things like hunting, leash laws and the role of women. It brings readers to a time when life was not measured by potential limitations and dangers, but by anticipation of adventure and unregulated childhood. It is a simple story about a real boy and a real dog in a long ago time. They loved each other and that's what mattered.
The good news is my sister has purchased this book for her grandsons, who love it. It has sparked conversations about the ways in which life is different now, but the bottom line is the boys love the book and their dog and that's all what matters to them.
What a fun read. 2007-02-11
This was a fun and entertaining read plus it gave a nice glimpse into an era and a part of the country that many of us are not familiar with. Obviously society's ideas about the norms for dogs have changed since then (dogs no longer roam at will in most areas) but that did not detract from the story at all. As a person who has read many a dog memory book I have to rate this one up there as one I will remember in detail for a very long time. If you want to laugh, cry, and have a few adventures join Farley and Mutt.
Don't let me give it away, You must read it for yourself 2006-08-19
This is one of my favorite dog books of all time, right up there with White Fang by Jack London. Get ready for a fun ride as you follow the author through the actual experience of a dog that is 'one of a kind' but that we all know in the many ways that dogs reach out and touch our lives by just being themselves. An astonishing, tender, revealing and sensitive book that will have you involved, right there with the owner and his family as each day leads to another amazing event.
An Unforgettable book.
A charming book 2006-08-05
I have not read this book in many years but I remember it as being one of the funniest books I have ever read. My old copy is falling apart, I'll have to get a new copy soon.
This is a great read-aloud 2005-11-15
My husband has been reading this book aloud to our three children, ages 12, 10 and 7. They howl with laughter when he reads it (a sound that is music to the ears) and demand more. The book provides an excellent opportunity to learn about and discuss different ways of life and different times.
The Dog Bites 2005-08-13
Farely Mowat's best loved book tells the splendidly entertaining story of his boyhood on the Canadian prairies. Mutt's pedigree was uncertain, but his madness was indisputable. He climbed tress and ladders, rode passenger in an open car wearing goggles and displaying hunting skills that bordered on sheer genius. He was a marvelous dog, worthy of an unusual boy growing up a raw, untamed wilderness.
very well written book 2005-01-25
Farley Mowet's mom bought a dog from the milk man. If you think thats strange wait until you read the many adventures Farly and his dog, Mutt, have in this classic dog and boy book. Mutt walks on fences, climbs latters and does many more acrobatical stunts. if you like studying books in a literary sense than this is even greater. A good book for all ages. Literature teachers, this the book for you. Many adventures in one story. I would reccomend it to anyone!
Simple-minded but overly bombastic 
2004-11-03
Summary: The true story of naturalist Farley Mowat and the first love of his life, his dog Mutt. Mowat relates excerpted tales from his childhood, most of which center around his unusual dog, Mutt. Mutt seems to be a once-in-a-lifetime kind of dog, whose unusual personality manifests itself in everything from duck hunting to cat chasing. Towards the end of the book, with the majority of Mutt's exploits behind him, the book expands to include stories of other pets, most notably a pair of great horned owls. The final chapter has the inevitable death of Mutt, although the details of his demise under the wheels of a runaway truck aren't given graphically.
The Good and the Bad:
I didn't really enjoy this book very much, although my age might have something to do with it. Actually, I don't even believe that because the completely unnecessary verbosity asks for a certain amount of sophistication from the reader, and anyone smart enough to swallow the big words is probably not going to be open to the message. The grand verbiage is related to my other big problem with the book, which is that the mythic legends of the dog are almost certainly inflated. Mowat instills his dog with so much human character and emotion that it would have been more believable if it turned out to be a man in a dog suit. Yet, he pooh poohs another naturalist for "presuming to know what an animal is thinking," with no apparent irony. Also, Mowat's sense of humor and self-importance are both extremely irritating. The humor is like a broad physical comedy in its lack of subtlety, and it's couched in so many words that it sounds like a foppish English gentleman failing miserably at a dinner conversation.
On the positive side, it did seem like Mutt was a special dog, hyperbole aside, and it was interesting to get slice of life stories about a budding naturalist in Canada in the 1930s.
Beloved dog, lost times 2003-07-20
This is a tale that couldn't happen today. Dogs don't have the lifestyle they did in the 1920's and 1930's in remote Canada, and sadly, boys don't either.
Mutt is a fascinating mutt with a mind of his own; halfway through the book I realised he must be part Siberian Husky with his deafness, his love of roaming and chasing and need to attend to his own desires.
Farley's mother demonstrated an act of faith- as well as the desire to save [money amount]- when she purchased Mutt as a puppy from a starving duck seller. Farley's dad wanted a hunting dog; Farley's mom didn't want to spend a lot of money on a dog during the Dust Bowl years, living in Saskatoon.
Dogs roamed free, boys roamed free. Boys weren't sent off to summer camp to keep busy- there was enough to do with their own imaginations, their friends and their animal companions. Attitudes towards cats were cavalier; some parts are very hard to read if you appreciate cats. Thankfully that attitude has changed over time.
The stories of the father's boating attempts are hilarious. I don't like boats, but am inspired to read "the boat that wouldn't float" by the same author. I live in the western US and have a vague understanding of how difficult it would be to navigate some of these rivers so I appreciated the delusional voyage of The Coot.
Farley paints his parents as people who had their own interests and needs, but also understood the needs of their son and his dog. They understood that living in a city wouldn't work for them, after several years living in the sparse western provinces. Farley's imagination was clearly nurtured and allowed him to become the prolific writer he became. Even the car (Eardlie, a Model A) has a character and idiosycrasies that add to the story.
My dog, too, is geriatric so I read the final chapter sadly. Mutt's demise will give fuel to the arguments of people who believe completely in leash laws.
Yes, this is a fantastic story of a dog, but it is also a wonderful story of life in a more free time, for children. Farley skips over most of the drawbacks of that time and paints a wonderful portrait of childhood.
The Dog Who Wouldn't Be 2003-02-23
The Dog Who Wouldn't Be
By: Farley Mowat
Reviewed by: Catherine Li
This book describes the life of a boy (Farley) with a dog named Mutt. Mutt was adopted by the author's mother when he was a puppy and was found by a boy who was selling baby ducks. Mutt was a very unique dog because he had excellent hunting skills. He could dive really deep to catch ducks under the water. Whenever the author's Dad fired his gun to hunt birds, Mutt could always retrieve a bird back even if the author's Dad missed his shot. Besides his hunting skills, he had ability to walk on fences, ladders, and trees - just like a cat! The first time he tried to walk on a fence he fell, but he kept trying until he was able to master his balancing skills on a narrow fence. Mutt was a very determined dog.
I really enjoyed reading this book because the writing describes a lot of details. The writing is very descriptive, and I could picture all the events in my mind. I love the huge vocabularies the author uses to make the sentences complex. "A swirl of muddy water marked his passing, and in the center of the swirl thee was a whitish blob that twisted back and forth lethargically." The author writes lengthy and quite difficult sentences. I remember when I tried reading this book a year ago, there was at least five to ten words I did not understand.
The author described the hunting skills and tricks Mutt could do in very expressive writing. Each chapter was extremely long, however I never got bored and kept reading. The events the author chose very amusing and thrilling. For instance, "The last jump took him well into deep water, and he began churning forward like an old-fashioned stern-wheeler." This book is so descriptive that it make the readers feel like they were really living in the Canadian plains.
I found this book very fascinating, especially when Mutt learns how to climb ladders, trees, and fences. My favorite section of this book is when Mutt climbed on top of a tree and there was a group of firefighters surrounding the tree. This section of the book is amusing because everyone thought it was a huge monster in the tree. Two people were holding guns and they called the firefighters to this event. It is a book worth reading. It has humorous stories and touching events. I really enjoyed reading this book.
