Ranch of Dreams [Hardcover]

Cleveland Amory (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 1997

After reading Black Beauty as a child, Cleveland Amory dreamed that some day he would have a ranch where animals would not be abused, but rather would, like that famous horse, end their days roaming proud and free. Many people know that for decades Amory has worked tirelessly on the behalf of animals as the founder of The Fund for Animals and that he first confessed to being adopted by a stray cat himself in The Cat Who Came for Christmas, the bestselling cat book of all time. But few know that Amory did in fact realize his childhood ambition by establishing the Black Beauty Ranch in East Texas. Now he shares, in his all-but-patented combination of humor and warmth, the remarkable stories of these rescuees. Over the years countless animals who have been mistreated or simply found inconvenient have been saved from death's door at this unique sanctuary. Wild burros from the Grand Canyon have been rescued from massacre. Goats from San Clemente Island have been saved from U.S. Navy guns. Nim, the talking chimpanzee and perhaps the most famous animal in the country, was released from a laboratory. Everything from elephants and buffalo to prairie dogs and, yes, cats have found their haven at the ranch, where they can live out their lives knowing, as the last line of Black Beauty puts it: My troubles are all over, and I am at home. At times heartbreaking, at times hilarious, always moving and engrossing, Ranch of Dreams is sure to capture the hearts and minds of Amory's countless readers.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In Ranch of Dreams, Cleveland Amory recounts his adventures traveling hither and yon for the Fund for Animals, saving creatures from human excesses. A zoo lover since being introduced to Anna Sewell's Black Beauty during childhood, Amory has made a great project of founding and maintaining an East Texas ranch that serves as a sanctuary for endangered and abused creatures, from burros evicted from the Grand Canyon to a great menagerie of kinkajous, foxes, pigs, aoudads, buffalo, and elephants, among others. He is a gracious and knowledgeable commentator on the lives of these animals, and a man of considerable tact, which must have helped when dealing with, say, the Defense Department in his efforts to save wild goats from a California island used for gunnery practice.

From Library Journal

The Black Beauty Ranch in east Texas is a childhood dream fulfilled for author, critic, editor, and anticruelty activist Amory, who founded the Fund for Animals. At this wildlife refuge, abused animals live out the remainder of their lives in dignity. Amory tells the heartwrenching stories of individual residents in the larger context of humanity's cruelty to animals in general. Residents include burros rescued by helicopter from the Grand Canyon despite U.S. Park Service efforts to thwart the attempt. There is Nim, the chimpanzee, raised by a human family, who could communicate in sign language but was sent to a lab to be a subject in a hepatitis experiment. Three-legged cats, navy goats, a diving horse, circus elephants, and bison?all live peacefully on the ranch. A necessary purchase for all libraries serving patrons concerned with environmental and animal rights issues.
-?Florence Scarinci, Nassau Community Coll. Lib., Garden City, N.Y.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult (November 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 067087762X
• ISBN-13: 978-0786214211
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #182,150 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars heart breaking, December 23, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Ranch of Dreams (Hardcover)

This is the best piece of non-fiction ever written. It is about an amazing ranch that takes in abused animals and their stories. The abuse mentioned in this book is horrible. From the tortured wild horses to the outrageous mistreatment of circus elephants. I could not put this book down. The only times that I did was when the tears blurred the pages.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very touching., December 7, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Ranch of Dreams: The Heartwarming Story of America's Most Unususal Animal Sanctuary (Paperback)

I was a bit dubious about reading this book, especially after my fiance thrust it at me and demanded that I read it the whole way through. Not really having read anything by Amory before, this was the first time. The stories within the book are at the same time inspiring and heartbreaking. It's wonderful to read about caring and hope in a world that can be so callous and cruel towards the animals. It was inspirational, and after finishing it I made a vow to make a donation towards his efforts. The book documents his honorable cause in great detail, and it would be hard for anyone to find a reason to put the book down.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ranch of Dreams Made Me Proud To Be A Texan, November 13, 2001

By 

Charlene Gomez (Corpus Christi, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ranch of Dreams (Hardcover)

Having never read anything by Cleveland Amory before I was quite surprised to learn of Black Beauty Ranch in East Texas.Ranch of Dreams opened my eyes to what really goes on behind the circus tents,most haunting and heartwrenching the cruel treatment of the elephants,ripped from their mothers and herds and beaten into submission.Dear Mr Amory;he passed before writing a follow up book. The book is well worth the read,a lesson in human compassion,and when you are finished,pass it on to a friend.