Shiloh [Paperback]

Phyllis Reynolds Naylor (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 1, 2000 | Age Range: 8 and up

MARTY WILL DO ANYTHING TO SAVE SHILOH

When Marty Preston comes across a young beagle in the hills behind his home, it's love at first sight -- and also big trouble. It turns out the dog, which Marty names Shiloh, belongs to Judd Travers, who drinks too much and has a gun -- and abuses his dogs. So when Shiloh runs away from Judd to Marty, Marty just has to hide him and protect him from Judd. But Marty's secret becomes too big for him to keep to himself, and it exposes his entire family to Judd's anger. How far will Marty have to go to make Shiloh his?

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

When 11-year-old Marty Preston chances upon a mistreated beagle pup in his hometown of Friendly, West Virginia, he is not prepared for the ethical questions he has to face. Should he return the dog to its owner, only to have the animal abused again? Should he tell his parents? Should he steal food to help the poor creature? Marty's efforts to cope with these questions provides the moral backbone for this story, which is presented in a language and manner that will be understood by third- and fourth-grade readers. The heart and beauty of this 1992 Newbery Medal winner lies in lessons children will take away with them. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

In the tradition of Sounder and Where the Red Fern Grows comes this boy-and-his-dog story set in rural West Virginia. When he finds a mistreated beagle pup, 11-year-old Marty knows that the animal should be returned to its rightful owner. But he also realizes that the dog will only be further abused. So he doesn't tell his parents about his discovery, sneaks food for the dog and gets himself into a moral dilemma in trying to do the right thing. Without breaking new ground, Marty's tale is well told, with a strong emphasis on family and religious values. This heartwarming novel should win new fans for the popular Naylor. Ages 8-12.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers (September 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689835825
• ISBN-13: 978-0689835827
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (380 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,070 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #12 in Books > Children's Books > Animals > Dogs
  • #75 in Books > Children's Books > Classics

More About the Author

I guess I've been writing for about as long as I can remember. Telling stories, anyway, if not writing them down. I had my first short story published when I was sixteen, and wrote stories to help put myself through college, planning to become a clinical psychologist. By the time I graduated with a BA degree, however, I decided that writing was really my first love, so I gave up plans for graduate school and began writing full time.

I'm not happy unless I spend some time writing every day. It's as though pressure builds up inside me, and writing even a little helps to release it. On a hard-writing day, I write about six hours. Tending to other writing business, answering mail, and just thinking about a book takes another four hours. I spend from three months to a year on a children's book, depending on how well I know the characters before I begin and how much research I need to do. A novel for adults, because it's longer, takes a year or more. When my work is going well, I wake early in the mornings, hoping it's time to get up. When the writing is hard and the words are flat, I'm not very pleasant to be around.

Getting an idea for a book is the easy part. Keeping other ideas away while I'm working on one story is what's difficult. My books are based on things that have happened to me, things I have heard or read about, all mixed up with imaginings. The best part about writing is the moment a character comes alive on paper, or when a place that existed only in my head becomes real. There are no bands playing at this moment, no audience applauding--a very solitary time, actually--but it's what I like most. I've now had more than 120 books published, and about 2000 short stories, articles and poems.

I live in Bethesda, Maryland, with my husband, Rex, a speech pathologist, who's the first person to read my manuscripts when they're finished. Our sons, Jeff and Michael, are grown now, but along with their wives and children, we often enjoy vacations together in the mountains or at the ocean. When I'm not writing, I like to hike, swim, play the piano and attend the theater.

I'm lucky to have my family, because they have contributed a great deal to my books. But I'm also lucky to have the troop of noisy, chattering characters who travel with me inside my head. As long as they are poking, prodding, demanding a place in a book, I have things to do and stories to tell.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

89 of 92 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Boy, a Beagle. . .and a Dilemma July 20, 2000

By Mike Powers

Format:Paperback

What a wonderful book! I read it after my 11-year old son suggested it as a change from my usual reading fare of history and biography. It turned out to be much more than just a summertime reading diversion...it became for me a deeply moving reading experience in its own right. I was quickly captivated by Marty and his family, Shiloh, the beagle, and yes, even the despicable Judd Travers.

The story is straightforward: Marty Preston is an eleven-year old boy living with his parents and two younger sisters in rural West Virginia. It is a close-knit, loving family with traditional values and a clearly defined set of rules to live by. His father is a mail carrier and his mother a homemaker.

One Sunday afternoon, as Marty is walking along a backwoods road, he spies a young beagle hiding under a bush. He calls to it, but the dog doesn't respond. When Marty walks away, the dog follows him. Marty tries to get the dog to come to him several times, but the animal, which has obviously been abused, cowers miserably. Finally, the dog happily comes to Marty when the boy whistles at him. Marty immediately falls in love with the dog, whom he names Shiloh. The little beagle responds with trust and affection. The boy quickly figures out that Shiloh belongs to Judd Travers, a local ne'er-do-well, and a man with an unsavory reputation for dishonesty, a hot temper, and animal abuse. Marty wants to keep Shiloh, to protect him from Judd. However, his parents insist he return the dog to its rightful owner, which Marty begrudgingly does.

Shiloh runs away from Judd a second time and finds his way back to Marty's house. This time, Marty vows to keep him. He hides the dog, sneaks food out of the house to feed him, and begins to lie to friends and family when questioned about Shiloh's whereabouts. A tragic accident causes Marty's secret to be found out by his parents. He is forced once again to return Shiloh to his master. Marty, desperate to keep Shiloh, offers to do almost anything to get Judd to give him the dog.

I won't give away the ending of the book; suffice it to say, it is a dramatic and compassionate ending, sure to move anyone who reads this book.

"Shiloh" is a beautifully and masterfully written in every way. It is written in the first person, from Marty's point of view. The narrative is written in a rural West Virginia dialect that sounds totally natural and unaffected. It seemed almost possible for me to hear Marty speak as I read along. The book's plot is absolutely superb - tightly woven, dramatic, and realistic. Each of the characters come to life with complete believability. All of the situations presented in the narrative are easy to understand and appropriate for young readers.

Phyllis Reynolds Naylor proves why she is such a gifted writer of children's books, mainly because she so brilliantly fires the reader's imagination and teaches positive values. In the story, she presents Marty with an ethical dilemma which, at one time or another, all children face. Marty's predicament is this: whether to do what is right in the eyes of a higher authority (his parents) when it is a reasonable certainty that the action will result in a great wrong being done by someone else; or to do what his heart says is right, even though that action is wrong in the eyes of the higher authority (his parents). Marty's dilemma is compounded his conscience, which speaks loudly and often to him, demanding from him both honesty and a sense of fair play. How Marty responds to these challenges is the great lesson taught by this book.

"Shiloh" is a winner of the Newbery Medal and a classic of children's literature. I heartily recommend it to kids of all ages...from 9 to 99.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Both boys and girls will love Shiloh! May 31, 2000

By "iloveprovence"

Format:Paperback

Shiloh is a wonderful example of realistic fiction for children. The story revolves around Marty, a small town boy in the hills of West Virginia. There isn't much money, and putting food on the table is difficult and all consuming for the adults of his community.

Marty spends his free time roaming the hills with his rifle, until he discovers Shiloh, a dog, whom he learns lives with constant abuse by his owner. Marty determines to rescue Shiloh and care for the dog he immediately becomes attached to. He finds, however, that simply wanting something, is not a determinant of taking possession: he is stunned that the abusive owner has rights, which is confusing and heartbreaking for him.

Throughout the story, Marty is confronted by moral issues which he must wrestle with as he focuses his attention on loving Shiloh and finding a way to make life better for the dog. In doing so, his values are questioned and his morality is strengthened. He must learn to solve moral dilemmas by analyzing the choices he has. He realizes that adults don't always do the right thing, nor do they always have the answers to questions. Most, important, he learns to recognize that he has the ability, within himself, to realize the resolve it takes to do the right thing in the face of adversity.

Young readers will experience these dilemmas with Marty, and the story provides youngsters with the opportunity to develop their own moral skills along with him.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Gives new meaning to caring for a pet November 3, 2001

By "kaia_espina"

Format:Paperback

To keep Shiloh, a white beagle with brown and black spots, Marty Preston has to do more than keep a water dish filled and train his dog not to go the bathroom indoors. He has to build a special pen, buy food with his own allowance, and even do some odd jobs for extra money. Also, as Shiloh is really someone else's dog, Marty has to lie and keep secrets from his parents and friends. He excuses his actions with the fact that Shiloh is better off with him than with the abusive original owner--which is, I know, justification enough for most readers. The novel is not that simplistic, though: Marty eventually realizes that he will have to come clean, even if it will mean losing his dog.

The characters in "Shiloh" are well-drawn and realistic. It was nice to read about complex people who love animals, grow up with guns and occasionally hunt for their own food. Their West Virginian dialect is a pleasure to read. Phyllis Reynolds Naylor's observations, through Marty's eyes, really seem like an eleven-year-old boy's, not a grown woman writer's. Moreover, her pace, like her integrity as a storyteller, never lags.

This is a great book for teaching children not just about dogs and other pets, but about right and wrong. Nothing is purely white or purely black in this novel, not even the "villian," Judd Travers. There is a powerful scene near the climax when Marty starts asking himself questions about what is ethical and what is not--about whether or not the ends justify the means. All the scenes that follow show how a young boy, through his love for his dog, learns life lessons about maturity, responsibility and respect.

Despite all this complexity, the lessons of "Shiloh", like its theme, are very simple. They are the universal values that all children pick up for themselves whenever they truly experience life.