My Side of the Mountain (Puffin Modern Classics) [Paperback]

Jean Craighead George (Author)

Book Description

Release date: April 12, 2004 | Age Range: 8 and up

Terribly unhappy in his family's crowded New York City apartment, Sam Gribley runs away to the solitude-and danger-of the mountains, where he finds a side of himself he never knew.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Every kid thinks about running away at one point or another; few get farther than the end of the block. Young Sam Gribley gets to the end of the block and keeps going--all the way to the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York. There he sets up house in a huge hollowed-out tree, with a falcon and a weasel for companions and his wits as his tool for survival. In a spellbinding, touching, funny account, Sam learns to live off the land, and grows up a little in the process. Blizzards, hunters, loneliness, and fear all battle to drive Sam back to city life. But his desire for freedom, independence, and adventure is stronger. No reader will be immune to the compulsion to go right out and start whittling fishhooks and befriending raccoons.

Jean Craighead George, author of more than 80 children's books, including the Newbery Medal-winning Julie of the Wolves, created another prizewinner with My Side of the Mountain--a Newbery Honor Book, an ALA Notable Book, and a Hans Christian Andersen Award Honor Book. Astonishingly, she wrote its sequel, On the Far Side of the Mountain, 30 years later, and a decade after that penned the final book in the trilogy, Frightful's Mountain, told from the falcon's point of view. George has no doubt shaped generations of young readers with her outdoor adventures of the mind and spirit. (Ages 9 to 12) --Emilie Coulter --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

An extraordinary book... it will be read year after year. -- The Horn Book

Product Details

• Age Range: 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Puffin Books (April 12, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0142401110
• ISBN-13: 978-0142401118
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (610 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,794 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #54 in Books > Children's Books > Classics
  • #91 in Books > Children's Books > Action & Adventure

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

148 of 150 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great adventure that stays with you. March 1, 2002

By Kerry Sullivan

Format:Paperback

OK, I'm 42, and here's my book report.

I read this book the first time back in about 1968. I can still remember dreaming about holing up in a tree house on a mountain somewhere while a great blizzard decends, the wind howling through the tree limbs. And surviving off the wilderness, trapping deer and fishing, hiding out from grownups. It was a tremendous adventure that has stayed with me through the years.

I recently bought this book for my 8-year old boy, but he's still pouring through the Harry Potter series (again), so I re-read it. It's still tremendous after all these years--the adventure every boy dreams of. It's a story of total independence and making it on your own, and the hero is as brave and resourcefull as I dreamed I would be if it were me on that mountain. The book is as entertaining today as it was back then. I know my boy will love it. It's magic without witchcraft.

109 of 119 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars My book report April 25, 2000

By A Customer

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I am 10 years old and have just read this book for my monthlybook report. I am a big fan of this book, My Side Of The Mountain. Theauthor of this book is Jean Craighead George. The main characters ofthe book are Sam Gribley, Frightful , and The Baron Weasel. Sam Gribley is a boy 15 years old who ran away from home to live on the Catskill Mountains. He ran away from home because there were11 poeple in his family, 4 brothers, 4 sisters and 2 adults plus Sam. Frightful is Sam's falcon, he took her from her nest when she was a baby and raised her. He also had a friend named The Baron Weasel who he caught in his trap.

My favorite chapter in the book is when Sam found Frightful a falcon so that he wouldn't get lonely. My second favorite chapter is When The City Comes To Me. And it is when his family comes to visit Sam. His Mom wants him to live in the barn until he is 16 but he doesn't want to.

The chapter that I liked the least was I Cooperate With The Ending. I found this chapter to be sad because I was really interested in the book and I didn't want it to end.

When my Aunt was in grade school she recommended this book to my Dad who was also in grade school. My Dad recommened this book to me and gave it to me for Christmas. When my brother is old enough I will recommended this book to him. The reason why I would recommended it to my brother or anyone is because it is a good book, full of adventure and excitement and I really enjoyed it. This book made me feel like I was in the story as one of the characters.

37 of 40 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Summit of a Mountain February 25, 2004

By Zinta Aistars

Format:Paperback

Dare I admit how many years ago I was but a girl, nose buried in this book? Decades, oh, decades ago. Yet even now it stands out as one of the beacon lights of my childhood, leading me to an adulthood that focuses around a love of wilderness.

When young Sam ran away from home (and this is something I routinely did as a girl, tying red bandana to a stick containing crackers, kitchen knife, and toothbrush, and rather long to do again, now as I spend too many of my days in an office) and headed into the Catskill Mountains, my heart went with him. No dream house could match the home he created inside the hollow of a big tree. No gourmet dinner could match the wilderness fare Sam put together, smacking his lips. No pet could match that fine falcon.

Jean Craighead George was then, and is now, at the top of the list of my favorite authors in children's and young adult literature. My own children are grown now, but as they grew, I read George's books to them, giving them not only a taste of fine writing, but also an education in science and wilderness survival, along with a healthy respect for environmental issues. George may write fiction, but her stories are all based on sound scientific data. How Sam survived on the mountain is based on good science. That he uses determination, intelligence, and discipline in living this way is good character. And that's something our kids don't see or read about nearly often enough today.

Highly recommended.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars One of the best books I've Read This Year April 17, 2002

A Kid's Review

Format:Paperback

This book, My Side of the Mountain, by Jean Craighead George is a great book. The main character, Sam Gribley, runs away from his New York City apartment one day to seek a new and independent life. Sam chooses to live in the Catskill Mountain because his Grandfather once owned a farm there. While Sam is there, he meets many friends. Some of his new friends are people, and some are animals. Sam's best friend and helper is a falcon he calls Frightful. Sam also shows lots of courage and tolerance in this book. Sam was very courageous during the blizzard that hit the mountain. Sam shows tolerance because he eats things he's never eaten before such as rabbit, crayfish, and vension. This is a great book and anyone who likes adventure should read it.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars a tale of adventure in the wild January 22, 2011

By Julia Shpak

Format:Paperback

This book is dedicated to many people -
to that gang of youngsters who
inhabited the trees and waters of the
Potomac River so many years ago, and
to the bit of Sam Gribley in the
children and adults around me now.

Young Sam Gribley is tired of living in a cramped apartment in New York City. He dreams of adventure and independence, a free life without urban noises. That how he comes up with a plan to run away. His father approves, thinking his boy will give up and return home the same day.

Sam hitchhikes his way to the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York. There he finds a piece of land that used to be his great-grandfather farm; this land is still in the name of his family.

The boy sets up house in a huge hollowed-out tree, with a falcon and a weasel for companions. He needs all his wits and knowledge of nature for survival. With a couple of failures along the way, he learns to live off the land, and grows up a little in the process. But with the winter approaching, how will he manage to survive the severe cold and blizzards in the wilderness?

Julia Shpak
Author of "Power of Plentiful Wisdom". Available on Amazon.