“Big Red was a champion Irish setter;
Danny a young trapper who knew more
about the ways of varmints and hounds than
of the world of fancy kennels and dog shows.
But Red’s owner knew a good dog man when
he saw one, and entrusted Red to Danny’s
training.
“This is the story of their unbreakable
partnership, of Red’s heart and courage and
Danny’s faith and growing understanding of
what it takes to make a good dog and a good
man. Their feud with Old Majesty, legendary
bear of the Wintapi, and their grim
battle with a wolverine are high peaks in a
tale which paints the stern life of the wilderness
in strong, clear strokes.”
—NEW YORK TIMES
“A moving and exciting story of a boy’s love
for a dog. The feeling of the woods and the
outdoors comes through with complete reality.”
—CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
A HOLIDAY HOUSE BOOK
listed in
Wilson’s High School Catalog(**)
Wilson’s Children’s Catalog(**)
American Library Association’s Basic Booklists
* * *
Rear Flap
Stories About Big Red’s Sons
IRISH RED
“Mike was the son of that famous Irish setter,
Big Red, hero of another fine dog story.
But, with all his champion blood, Mike was
a runt and a rebel. Against the wilderness
background known so intimately to the author
and pictured by him so lovingly, Danny
and his father hunt and trap and fish and
patiently try to make another champion of
the reluctant Mike in a fast moving and
engrossing story.”
—CHICAGO TRIBUNE
OUTLAW RED
“When his crate is jolted off a truck in an
isolated area, the sheltered show dog, Sean,
champion son of the famous Big Red, is
suddenly thrown on his own. Interwoven with
the gripping account of the desperately
lonely dog’s survival in the wilds, his
abduction of a mate from her kennel, and his
battles with and final victory over a killer
coyote dog, is the story of Sean’s young
kennel attendant, also an outlaw because of an
accidental shooting, and the one person to
whom Sean longs to give his wholehearted
devotion.”
—ALA BOOKLIST
* * *
Rear Cover
A FEW OPINIONS ABOUT BIG RED
“Sure-fire combination of boy and dog. When they meet, it is love at
first sight, and so it will be for all who read the story.”
—library journal
“It is obvious based upon observation and experience. The background
is vivid, the human and animal relationships clear cut and
convincing.”
—saturday review
“A really good dog story written with power and discernment. Anyone
who loves dogs, from sixth graders up, will be enthusiastic about
Big Red.”
—elementary english
“No one can write a better animal tale than Jim Kjelgaard.”
—may hill arbuthnot
* * *
Version Info
v 1.0 HTML
Scanned and proofed 2009-08-15
Possible errors in text meeky / meekly
When Ol’ Majesty is first spotted again, Ross can’t use his hounds to track him, yet he can use them later after the mule is killed.
Inconsistent spellings Sylvester’s Boy / Sylvester Boy
mis-step / misstep
trap-line / trap line
high-strung / high strung
that-away / thataway
hind-quarter / hind quarter
running-board / running board
he-coon / she coon
mebbe-so / mebbe-so
flash-light / flashlight
Big Red Page 18
