Customer Reviews

Moccasin Trail (Puffin Newbery Library)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Jim Keath is the main character of the story. He goes through his share of difficulties in order to find out who he really is. He was quite young when he sneaked away from home to follow his Uncle. The Uncle was wild and lived the life of a trapper. This is the life Jim learned until a tragic accident took place between him and a bear. His life was changed forever by this experience. He was nursed back to life by an old indian squaw and slowly became a part of the Crow tribe. He lived with them six years and began to feel more like and Indian than white. That was fine until he learned of the death of his mother. He also learned that he was needed by his two brothers and sister. This set in motion a series of events that would change his life forever again! My nine year old daughter truly enjoyed the book despite the fact that I thought she would struggle with many of the words and writing style. I recommend it to you, but parents should take the time to read it to younger children.

The book I read is titled Moccasin Trail; it was written by Eloise Jarvis Mcgraw. It is a book about a young man Jim Keath who was impressed by his uncle who was a trapper. He was so influenced by the ways of his uncle that he runs away from home to follow his uncle. Not only did he not let his parents know that he was following his uncle, but he failed to let his uncle know as well. He finally made himself known to his uncle and shortly afterward a bear attacked their camp. The bear mauled Jim. A group of Crow Indians found him, took him to their camp and proceeded to treat him as one of their own. He ran away from them too, to begin trapping; this is where the story begins. This book is a very good book; it has a good story. It has its happy, sad, funny, frustrating, and suspenseful moments. It is a book about the old west before large amounts of settling actually took place. Almost the entire book is an adventure, from surviving the harsh winter up on the Rocky Mountains pass to running for his life from a group of Indians. It was a very good book-the kind that you donąt want to put down until you have finished reading it. I really enjoyed reading this book I found it to be extremely interesting and exciting. I have always been interested in adventure reading, especially when it seems as it could be true. That is what was so great about this book; it could very easily have been a true story not like one of those science fiction adventures. I thought it was an excellent book and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading a good adventure book.

If you llike the outdoors, the ways of the Old West, and unmatched descriptions, this is a book you should look into. The happenings of the book are so well described that you can see, hear, taste, feel and smell every detail possible throughou the book. Mrs. McGraw sends a vivid picture of setting into the reader's mind so well that you could feel the grizzly take a swipe at Jim's face. Readers of any age could fall in love with this adventure story. It is not specified toward one age group. Young readers can experience this book, and grow substantially in thier reading and writing skills, as well as other skills such as how they express themselves. Adults can benefit remarkably simply becuase they will have such an an\dventure in itself reading it.

My younger sister bought this book from her school's book fair, and she kept bugging me to read it. At first, I thought it was just a stupid kid's book, but that all changed once I read it. The descriptions are so vivid, it makes me feel as if I am really there.

We read and reread my sister's copy so many times that the cover fell off. I wanted to buy my own copy, but when I went to a bookstore, they told me it was out of print. Luckily, my sister thought of Amazon.com, and I had a wonderful surprise that Christmas when I received the book I had given up on!

True, the book is a bit down on the Indian culture, but only slightly. I got the impression that although his family pressures Jim to renounce his Crow ways, Jim's life is benefitted by the skills that he learned with the Crows.

Whenever my family drives through Oregon, my sister and I look forward to seeing the signs that say "Tualatin River," "Multnomah Falls," and "Umpquah River." I think there's a river or a mountain range or something in Washington called "Cayuse," too.

Kudos to Ms. McGraw!

Moccasin Trail is a great book about a young trapper by the name of Jim Keath, who decides to follow the ways of his uncle and live with him. However, that dream was short-lived, for as he arrived at his uncle's camp, a large bear attacked him and Jim was badly hurt. He is saved from certain death by a group of Crow Indians, who treat him as one of their own. After six years of living with the Indians, Jim returns to his family to help them settle out West. The whole book tells of how Jim must reaccustom himself to the life of a white-man, and still keep the senses of an Indian so that he can help his family.

Jim Keath, the 19-year-old protagonist, is a young man caught in a serious culture clash, struggling to determine his own destiny. Eldest of four he ran away from civilized farming life, tangled with a vicious grizzly, was nursed back to health and adopted--as a replacement son--by kind Crow Indians. After nine years during which he has "counted coup" and learned the skills of a warrior, he steals a prize mare and runs away again--haunted my childhood memories of the family he abandoned. Teaming up with Tom Rivers, a veteran mountain man, Jim enjoys beaver trapping--until the beavers are about trapped out. Now what can he do with his life?

After receiving a crumpled letter from his long lost brother (which he can't even read), hand delivered by friendly Indians, Jim parts ways from Tom to seek the remnants of his family: Jonnie 17, Sally 15, and golden-haired Daniel 6. The odyssey of his physical journey (running the gorge, outwitting hostile Indians, wintering out, clearing the land--like the Bourgeways whom he despises) makes fast-paced reading. Yet this story proves insightful YA fare, for MOCCASIN TRAIL plumbs the depths of a human heart torn between two worlds. Family unity is threatened on several occasions, while Jim's family loyalty is cruelly tested, for he clings tenaciously to his Indian customs and appearance, which horrifies his scornful sister.

Haunted by the memory of his medicine song dream (a young warrior' vision quest) Jim recalls the English words about a green valley and still waters. Yet how can he reject the power of his spirit Helpers to complete the transformation back to a white man? Every man needs to seek out his own home; can Talks Alone/Jim find peace in either world, as Mountain Men are a dying breed? This editon would be improved by a map showing the Keath family's migration west into Oregon Territory. Is an overland route truly possible?

Family drama and adventure combine in this realistic mid-1800's Oregon Country novel, Moccasin Trail. Main character Jim Keath is struggling to find his niche. He is undoubtedly the Michael Jackson of the 1800's, a white man impersonating an Absarokian Crow Indian. While Jim does not have the same dancing ability or plastic surgery, he inhibits keen beaver trapping and survival skills, not to mention the braids and moccasins, of a wild Native American.
Nine years before the scene of the story, Keath runs away from his family only to end up living with the Crows after a tragic accident on the trail occurs. He adapts to the tribe's culture and lifestyle before departing them as well to pursue in the art of beaver trapping.
Things start to become complicated when Jim somehow receives a letter of help from his family. Unsure of what to do, Jim must decide whether to follow the road he once walked upon or the path he is currently journeying across... Full of suspense, this story leaves you on the edge of your seat and begging for more, describing what times and life were like in good ol' Manifest Destiny.

This was an excellent book. I really like the way Ms. McGraw portrayed the last days of the Wild West. The characters were well developed and realistic. I was a little disappointed with the ending, but that didn't stop me from liking the book.

This book is about an Indian raised man, Jim, who was really white. He ran-a-way from his home with his uncle, however, his uncle did not know that Jim was folowing him. How the story kind of starts out is (when he was maybe 11) a grizzly bear attacked him. The Crow Indians saved him by rasing him themselves.

So Jim starts to take on the Indian ways, but then he runs away form the Crows and starts to trap for furs. Then he gets a letter (Jim can't read, by the way). Jim then goes to a trader he knows a little bit, so that the trader can read the letter.

While he is at the traders he runs into his brother Jonnie. Jonnie and his sister and 11 year old brother are going to Oregon to claim land, but they can't do it because none of them are old enough. So Jonnie had sent the letter to Jim, because he is the only one old enough in the family to claim land.
Jim has a hard time fitting in with the white people and even harder with his family. And his sister Sally doesn't make things easier.
When Jim finaly makes a last try to fit in it is for the sake of his yongest brother, Dan'l.
This story can be very sad at points, and is fiction with a good bit of adventure (I think so any way).
I say this is the best book I have read in a long time. I would suggest this book and THE GOLDEN GOBLET for anyone to read!!!!!

I recently finished reading this book to my sons, ages 11 and 9. The whole book was fascinating, beautifully -- almost poetically, very descriptively -- written, with patient (though certainly not boring!) character development. The ending is so amazing, so perfect, I wept. It is a Newbery Honor book that wouldn't be given the award today, because of the nature of how Native Americans are depicted, and because of the central theme of Psalm 23, which is a vital plot point. A few here have suggested that this is a racist book. I, instead, think that it's a thoughtful examination of cultures at the time. In fact, for the time in which it was written, 1952, I think it was very sensitively written. It is true that not all Native Americans are painted in a glowing light, but neither are all the whites. Instead, it shows both the strengths and weaknesses of both cultures. The book also has quite a tender handling of nature that surprised me. Books written in the mid-20th century were all about "progress." This book makes a case that there is a time and place for progress, and a time and place for the wildness of nature.