Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Search - Dog Who Wouldn't Be

Dog Who Wouldn't Be
Dog Who Wouldn't Be
Author: Farley Mowat
As a puppy, he saw that he was going to lead a dog's life -- unless he stopped being a dog. So he began to act like a human being. At least, that's the way his owners figured it. — What dog, for instance, would climb ladders and walk the tops of fences? — What dog would dive for crayfish or hobnob with skunks? Or insist on wearing motoring goggles...  more »
ISBN-13: 9780515056174
ISBN-10: 0515056170
Publication Date: 6/1980
Reading Level: All Ages
Rating:
  • Currently 4.7/5 Stars.
 3

4.7 stars, based on 3 ratings
Publisher: Jove Books
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover
Members Wishing: 0
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed Dog Who Wouldn't Be on + 16 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
Mutt, the star of this story, is quite a dog: independent of spirit, wiley, headstrong, creative, moody, occasionally petulant, a determined tracker and hunter, and quite comfortable in a pair of open-car riding goggles ! Today he would have been the topic of a Marley and Me sort of book, with footnotes written by highly respected dog behavorists. But this story is set in rural Canada, in the late 1920s and early 1930s, back in the days when both dogs and boys roamed free, unrestrained and unfettered, when being off-leash wasn't restricted to dog parks and children weren't constrained by overly protective parents and tightly schedules activities. Both Mutt and Farley were open to whatever life had to offer, including unexpected adventures and all the risks associated with unrestrained freedom.
Farley's father, a character in his own right, kept the pot stirred by moving the family from sedate Ontario to the wilds of Saskatchewan, with road trips and side trips galore, all traveled in Eardlie, the family's convertible Model A Ford (a bit player in this story.) Their lives and adventures were shared by resident owls, squirrels, and an odd assortment of friends. Farley's mother, a model of patience, somehow managed to remain relatively unflustered as Mutt chased skunks around the vegetable cellar and owls perched on visiting minister's shoulders !
This story takes the reader into a world very different from today's environment of raised consciousness -- I wouldn't exactly call it 'the good old days', but a time and place worth the visit, a laugh, a tear here and there, and a few hours of our time.
reviewed Dog Who Wouldn't Be on + 431 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
I've enjoyed all of Farley Mowat's books, but I think this one will always be my favorite.
reviewed Dog Who Wouldn't Be on + 96 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Like many of Mowat's books, this was entertaining but probably not exactly truthful.
reviewed Dog Who Wouldn't Be on + 318 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
This book is the hilarious misadventures of a mutt who refused to be a dog. He climbed ladders, walked on the top of fences, dived for crayfish and hobnobed with skunks.
Set in Canada, this story of a boy and a dog takes place in the 30's.
Published by Pyramid Willow Books in 1968, from a Little, Brown ed. in 1957, it is, I believe intended for young adults, but enjoyable to a pet lover of any age.
reviewed Dog Who Wouldn't Be on + 459 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
This is one of my all time favorite dog books. I was lucky enough to find it in hardcover at Goodwill, but I'm not parting with it!
Read All 6 Book Reviews of "Dog Who Wouldnt Be"


Genres: