Customer Reviews

LITTLE BRITCHES

5 star:		(78)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If a classroom full of students with BEHAVIOR problems can sit through this book without incident, you can imagine how compelling this story is.

Little Britches is the first book in an autobiographical series. Ralph Moody (aka Little Britches) tells us about his family's move from the East and their struggles and triumphs as they scrape a living from a ranch in Colorado. Ralph is 9 years old, with an older sister and several younger siblings. The book is much more than a chronology of interesting and exciting events-- much more. It is rich in the values of honesty, family unity, ingenuity, and the pride of doing a task well.

There are many strong messages about building character -- earning trust, earning respect, and giving a man a good day's work. Ralph's wonderfully wise father is his primary teacher regarding the building of Ralph's "character house", but along the way Ralph meets other memorable men -- "Hi" the cowboy was our favorite. Ralph gets in several predicaments, doesn't always make the right choice, but takes to heart his father's wise counsel.

This book is a true treasure. I would recommend it for ages 5 and up as a read aloud. 10 and up to be read alone. A great read for adults too -- a "can't miss" present. Don't hesitate -- put it in your library and then share the gift of this wonderful author.

Little Britches is one the best books we have ever read! It has sparked a number of conversations with my young sons about character and wise choices. This morning I even pulled it out to read a quote from it after they had disobeyed me about something! The quote is something Ralph's father says to him after he (Ralph) has lied: "If (a man) tells lies to be able to do the things he shouldn't do but wants to, his character will soon become a ruin. A man with a ruined character is a shame on the face of the earth."

I highly recommend this book BUT please be aware that it does contain cursing! Fortunately, we are reading this aloud, so I can skip over objectionable words, but in all the reviews I have read (on Amazon and elsewhere), no one has mentioned this. Am I the only one who objects to my elementary-school aged children reading curse words?

Anyway, wonderful book, HIGHLY recommended!

In 1987 while living in Haines,Alaska;I asked the librarian for a good book. I wanted something like Little House on the Prairie kind of story. She handed me Little Britches. I took it home and read the most wonderful adventure of a boy, growing up and learning lessons in life. It touched my heart so deeply I felt I knew him. I returned to the library after I had finished reading the book and asked if he had written any other's. The library owned one other book by Ralph Moody and that was Man of the Family. It was checked out,and not due in for two weeks. I put in a request and waited anxiously. When I finally was able to read it, it was just as wonderful as the first. To my delight Mr. Moody had written many books of his childhood. I have six children who love me to read these stories to them. Of all the books I have ever read, I must say by far that Ralph Moody's Little Britches is my all time favorite book.

I've read the Little House on the Prairie and Anne of Green Gables series and this beats the lunch money out of both those series! I'm in my mid-twenties and read this aloud with my parents who are in their mid-sixties and we couldn't put it down! We'd read together late into the night, and steal it away to read ahead on our own whenever we could. Little Britches is tough, brave, and hilarious! Ralph Moody has written in a wonderfully straightforward manner of the joys and tragedies of a life lived with dignity, honor, and especially humor. "Father" teaches so simply and beautifully the way to love and raise children. His family becomes so real that you feel like you're saying goodbye to your best friend when the book ends. I laughed and cried and practically wet my pants because I couldn't bear to take a break in the middle of the chapter. I'll read this one over and over. It's something that grows into you and is impossible for you to grow out of.

P.S. DO NOT read this series out of order.

I read this book after my 9-year old finished it for school. The lessons and values that Ralph Moody learned growing up are so good and true-even if sometimes they were learned the hard way. Mr. Moody's book teaches wonderful values like responsibility, respect, honesty, hard work, and committment and support of the family. The part I liked best was the relationship that Ralph had with his father. This world would be a much brighter place to live in if every son had a father like Ralph's. I think a dad reading this to his kids would teach lessons they all would remember.

Little Britches is the sort of book that you wish could be made available to every man, woman and child in today's mixed up world. It is wonderfully inspirational and would go a long way toward making you think about what is really important in life and how you ought to go about being the best kind of human being that you could be. I have re-read the entire Little Britches series for the last 20-plus years and just recently ordered the entire set from Amazon.com. I am thrilled to think that they are still in print and I look forward to many years of enjoyable re-reading of them again. Do yourself a favor and buy Ralph Moody's books. He had tremendous insight about life and living. He would undoubtedly be the kind of man we'd all like to know, be friends with, have as a dad, husband, brother etc. You'll love his books. You'll laugh and cry and be transported back into a wonderful time of life. You'll be left with some great new thoughts and feelings about what really matters after all.

I first read a book from this series, "the fields of home" when I was 8 or 9, on my fathers recomendation, he said it reminded him of his father and himself. after reading the story, I found that rather than seeing my father and grandfather, I saw my dad and myself. I didnt know any other books from this author existed until a couple of years ago, when I ran accross the entire box set. my whole family has enjoyed them; both as read aloud books for the younger kids but as quiet reading for the older ones as well as my wife and I. I read the entire series at least once a year, and they never fail to bring a warm feeling to my heart, as well as a close feeling of family ties and kinship to the rural way of life. If the kids of today cared half as much for the well being of the family as Ralph Moody did for his, this would be a much better world to live in

When his New England family is obliged to move out to frontier Colorado at the Turn of the Century, Ralph Moody quickly delights in the western lifestyle. But before the 8-year-old boy can start taming horses and herding cows, he has many hard lessons to learn himself along the difficult road of life, in order to build the walls of his "character house."

The Moodys rent land and a rundown shack on the flatlands outside of Denver, but they must struggle for economic and physical survival in a never-ending series of battles against Nature, the Gold Panic, accidents, his father's weak lungs and the vicious water hogs at the head of Bear Creek. Ralph's own impetuosity and sneakiness land him in trouble, often requiring his parents' ingenuity and patience in meting out deserved, but character-buildihng, punishment. The seemingly incorrigible boy is a source of both pride and despair to his hard-working, honest parents, who strive to prevent their offspring from losing their gentlemanly upbringing in the wild Colorado boonies.

Ralph must come of age in the family's first three and ½ years as Westerners. He meets an old Indian named Two Dog with whom he establishes an immediate and lasting, though rarely verbal, friendship. He confesses his "crime" to the tall, tough Sheriff of Fort Logan, though he never tells Mothers that he did so in a saloon! He idolizes a friendly cowboy named Hi Beckman, who teaches him invaluable lessons about training horses and cows, plus stunt riding and even how to shoot a gun.

But it is Ralph's relationship with his adored Father which proves the core of this heartwarming story. Father doesn't say much, but he provides his son with serious advice for a healthy, decent life. Being promoted to Partner by his father is a great joy to Ralph, who at 11 and ½ was accepted as a man in many ways. LITTLE BRITCHES-Ralph's nicknamed given by his cowboy mentor-is a a wonderful, warm, and interesting story, for kids of all ages!

I'm 10 yeas old. I read it and it gave me a new way to look at things, about life, people and family. Ralph Moody is an ispiering auther and writes great books. I've only read Little Britchs snd the they way Iliked that one I think I and you will love them all.

I introduced my family to the Moody family under the guise of just reading a small section - just one of their adventures. After that, they were hooked, and we have continued to read the rest of the series. The values of hard work and honesty are present throughout, which makes this a wonderful teaching tool. My children have acted out scenes from the story because the lively adventures of the Moody children are irrestistible. Mr. Moody is a clear and descriptive writer and made us feel like part of his family while reading this book.