Customer Reviews

Strider

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This story is about a boy named Leigh and a dog named Strider.Strider gets found by Leigh and his friend Barry.They both own Strider.Furthermore, Barry has to visit his real
mom.So Leigh can have Strider for a whole week.Durning
that week Leigh's dad turns up.In this story Leigh's dad comes to visit Leigh a lot.When Barry comes back it's time for school again.Also,durning school Barry and Leigh loses their friendship.Barry runs a lot in this story because of Strider.He even makes the track team with Kevin.Leigh want's his friendship back with Barry so he leaves Strider in Barry's yard ,but Strider comes back and they become friends again.At the end Leigh gets closer with his dad and gets a new frienship with Geneva.One more thing I forgot to say is that Leigh does real good in the track race.

It is the sequel to Dear Mr. Hanshaw. You can tell it's by the same author, though. The author is Beverly Clearly. She is one of my favorite authors. Strider didn't impress me though. This book is not seperated into chapters, it's seperated into journal entries. My favorite part is when Barry and Leigh find the dog on the beach.

The story is about a boy named Leigh, who, is the new kid in school. Leigh finds a stray dog on the beach. The dog was laying down, so Leigh and his friend Barry tried all sorts of ways to get him up. None of them worked. So, Leigh and Barry started running. The dog followed them. Then, he layed down exactly where he was again. The dog looked sad and lonely. So, they decided to have a joint custody with the dog and name him Strider. Barry would keep Strider in his yard during school,Barry and Leigh would play with him after school, and Leigh would keep the dog at night. Leigh's mom and dad are divorced. Leigh has been worrying about his dad because he's losing alot of money. Anyway, Barry has to go on a vacation with his real mom and dad, so Leigh gets to keep Strider for a whole two weeks! But, Strider kept chewing on Leighs bedroom rug, so he decided to build a fence. He called his dad to build one. His dad got a new job. Leigh was relieved. Then, when Barry came back, they had a fight about who keeps the dog. But, they worked it out. Then, Leigh gets this cool new shirt from the thrift shop. The next day, he wore it to school. A rich kid shouted "Hey, that's my shirt!" and it was his shirt. His mom took it to the thrift shop and sold it. So, he ran after him. They did this every morning until they became friends and joined track and became friends. At track, he meets a girl named Geneva who does hurtles at the track. Now, Leigh has three friends. How will the story end? Read Strider and find out!

Strider was, in many ways, a more enjoyable read than its predecessor. Dear Mr. Henshaw was interesting, but Strider comes in at a more pivotal time in Leigh's life. He's just entering high school and has more complex problems (to a degree) to deal with. It was very interesting seeing how his life had changed since Dear Mr. Henshaw, particularly his relationship with his dad, which was no longer as strained. (I also was saddened, but not in a bad way, by the reference to Leigh's former favorite book, "Ways to Amuse a Dog") I did feel like there was too much description, particularly since this story is being told by a 14 year old boy. He does want to be a writer, but still, nobody actually writes like that, and it ruins some of the relatability. There were also big passages where nothing eventful happened and I found myself wanting to skip over them, because they really were just filler points. I strongly felt that the book should have ended with the scene with Leigh and his dad, as to me, that is the essence of both books and nothing that came afterwards was too notable. Let me correct myself there. There was one notable thing, which I'm sure Gordon Korman would be highly proud of: neither Bandit nor Strider died! Can you believe it? I'm having trouble processing it-a dog book in which the dog doesn't die. Thank you, thank you, thank you Beverly Cleary!

Rating: 3.5/5

I think that "Strider" is an excellent book, because the author, Beverly Cleary, uses very vivd examples, and it is so easy to picture i in your head. All of the events that take place in this book are very descriptive; you can't stop from imagining them in your head. The personalities of the characters were very easy to picture. I even could think of some people I know that could represent dome of the characters in the book. Another reason why I liked this book is because it has a good story to go along with it. It just leaves you hanging at the end of each chapter, and makes you never want to put it down. You'll be amzed of how much you read this book; because you don't realize how long you've been reading. You get so invovled in the book, that you lose track of time. What else I like about the book, is that it is exactly written the same way as its first edition, "Dear Mr. Hensaw." I suggest you read this book, and guarantee that you will never put it down.

I think one of the best parts of the book, is when the main character, Leigh Botts, joins the track team. He joins mainly for fun, but runs with his dog, Strider, everyday after track practice. He begins getting faster, and concentrates more and more on a victory at the first meet. After many hours of training, he finally meets his goal. Then, he decides to try an even more amazing feet. Braking the school record. Will he do it, or will he get injured and sit out for the rest of the year. To find out, read the book.

I think one of the most vivd story elements in the book, are definantly the characters. Like I said, they are just so easy to picture. The main character, Leigh, is a young boy who really loves life. He is often arguing with his mom, but who can blame a boy that never gets to see his dad. I can picture Leigh in my mind as this character, and I bet you could too. Another story element that stands out alot is the setting. You will notice that you can easily tell where the story takes place, just by noticing how his community acts. He lives in a small, quiet town where almost everyone knows everyone. This town reminds me of my own, so I can picture it easily. I guess that liveing in a town like his helps picture it, but I know that you'd be able to imagine exactly what his town is like.

The book I read, called Strider, is about a boy named Leigh who finds a lonely dog while walking to the beach with his friend Barry. When Leigh calls the dog, it doesn't budge, but then it comes to him eventually. He names the dog Strider because the dog takes long strides when it runs. This dog changes Leigh's life. Before he found Strider, Leigh's parents were divorced and Leigh still wasn't comfortable with that. Now he realizes that he has responsibilities (such as taking care of Strider,) and starts to feel happier about his life. I liked this book because it told about someone's normal life and how people have their ups and downs in life. I would only recommend this book to those who like books written in a journal format.

My ten-year-old son feels much better about our upcoming divorce and custody arrangements after reading about Leigh, his friend Barry, and Strider -- an abandoned dog they found and now share joint custody of

Leigh Bolts, a fourteen year old, lives in Pacific Grove. Leigh is still a little depressed because his parents are divorced. When Leigh finds a hungry,and abandoned dog on the beach, he feels happy. He names him Strider. Strider and Leigh become best friends. I gave this book four stars because it is a great and exciting book. I hope you like it too.

Beverly Cleary looks in on the world of Leigh Botts, a boy who is part of a family that is now often the norm--that of a single and divorced mother and one child. The "Strider" of the title is the name of the dog that Leigh befriends--an important addition to the life of Leigh and his abbreviated family. The dog also becomes the boy's companion on his long runs as he trains for track. One of my favorite parts of the book is Leigh's writing of an essay for class in which he distills the essence of track competition--that in which the runner strives for his own personal best rather than for the goal of placing first--an attitude that I know well from my own daughter's extremely passionate participation in high school track and cross country.

This story was about a boy named Leigh and his friend Barry. They find a dog and decide to have joint custody over him. No one believes that they will keep it. Do they keep it? Or does one of them get the dog?

I think other kids would enjoy reading this book. Strider starts out ok, but gets really good towards the end. Yes, I would recommend it. The characters were pretty much believable. I think you should read it. My favorite part was the ending - which I'm not going to give away - but I also liked the part when Geneva and Leigh pull weeds together.

The first time that I read strider I didn't like it ,but it was great this time I enjoyed it a lot more. I would totally recommend this book. My two favorite parts in this book were went Leigh the main character invites Geneva to pick weeds with him and Leigh's composition for his english class during the second semester that was only nouns and verbs.The people that I would recommend this book to is anyone that could relate to loving dogs or loving sports.