Product Details

• Published on: 1995
• Format: Import
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 48 pages

Customer Reviews

Excellent book, but NOT a book for young children.
I thought this was an excellent book. Despite the one review below, this edition (hardcover, Lassie standing on the tip of a hill) does not appear to be abridged in any form (from the novel), nor is it what you might call an illustrated book-- there's a small sketch to accompany the start of each chapter, and a few full page drawings.

I bought this book to read to my children. Like I said, it's a really great book, but not for children of young ages. Get them an abridged version. Here's why:

1. Knight uses sophisticated language. It's in no way geared for children, and I found myself answering a lot of questions about what words meant, or just paraphrasing the content when things looked difficult.

2. Regional dialect. The characters are all in Yorkshire or Scotland, and Knight writes their dialect accordingly. Sometimes, *I* had a hard time discerning what was being said.

3. Subject matter. The main story is Lassie's journey, but there are numerous side plots that deal with a variety of more mature subjects, probably better suited for teenagers. The Carracloughs are dealing with the father not having a job, and the subsequent tension in the household. It's post WW1, and a veteran briefly discusses being in France, and there's a longer piece about a couple's son who was killed in the war. There's discussion of the euthenasia of dogs at a pound. Robbers attack a man and kill his dog. There are dog fights, boys cruelly throwing rocks at Lassie, somebody shooting at Lassie, Lassie's terrible conditions during her journey from weather and wear, etc...

I read a little background about Eric Knight. He was a WW1 veteran (killed in a plane crash in WW2). In America, he had a small little dog which was killed by a car, where upon he got a collie named Toots, which he based Lassie's character on. Tell me he didn't write himself into his book as Rowlie the peddler!

This book is abridged
I purchased this book believing that I was getting a new edition of the classic Eric Knight children's book. This book is a picture-book version of that classic, and the text is considerably abridged. The pictures are absolutely lovely, but they cannot, in my opinion, make up for the loss of the wonderful details, the dialogue, and the glorious description that the original contained. I applaud the editors for wanting to bring back a classic, but they would have done well to consider what made the book a classic in the first place.

My favorite book ever!
The book tells the amazing story of a Collie female dog, Lassie, whose owners are compelled to sell her because of financial troubles. After she breaks away from her new estate several times, she is taken to Scotland, a hundred miles away. But she doesn't give up. With her directional sense, she breaks away and keep running southward and southward, running into challenges that are virtually impossible for a dog.

There is no other book that I have read so many times. It keeps exciting since the early childhood to nowadays. A must read.