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Ghetto Cowboy Hardcover – August 9, 2011

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G. Neri (Author)
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G. Neri (Author), Jesse Joshua Watson (Illustrator)
4.5 out of 5 stars 47 customer reviews
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Product Details

  • Age Range: 10 and up
  • Grade Level: 5 and up
  • Lexile Measure: 660L (What's this?)
  • Hardcover: 224 pages
  • Publisher: Candlewick; First Printing edition (August 9, 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0763649228
  • ISBN-13: 978-0763649227
  • Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 0.8 x 8.5 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (47 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,061,602 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 starsThe neighs have it.
By E. R. Bird HALL OF FAMETOP 500 REVIEWER on October 1, 2011
Format: Hardcover
Fun Fact: Parents these days speak in code. As a New York children's librarian I had to learn this the hard way. Let's say they want a folktale about a girl outwitting a witch. I pull out something like McKissack's Precious and the Boo Hag and proudly hand it to them. When I do, the parent scrunches up their nose and I think to myself, "Uh-oh." Then they say it. "Yeah, um . . . we were looking for something a little less . . . urban." Never mind that the book takes places in the country. In this day and age "urban" means "black" so any time a parents wants to steer a child clear of a book they justify it with the U word, as if it's the baleful city life they wish to avoid (this in the heart of Manhattan, I will point out). Any black author or illustrator for children that you meet will probably have stories similar to this. Maybe part of the reason I like Greg Neri so much is that he's not afraid to be as "urban" as "urban" can be. He does all the stuff these parents cower from. He writes in dialect, sets his stories in cities, talk about gangs and other contemporary issues, and produces stories that no one else is telling. That no one else is even attempting to tell. Street chess? Try Chess Rumble. Graphic novels discussing how the media portrays black youth? Yummy. And how about black cowboys living in big cities like Philadelphia or Brooklyn? For that you'd have to find Ghetto Cowboy (not "Urban Cowboy") and read it in full.Read more ›
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5.0 out of 5 starsFantastic
By Anne Loader McGee on March 14, 2013
Format: Hardcover
I thought this story was outstanding. It was not only different from so many other children's books I've read, but it was exceptionally well written and captured ghetto street language perfectly. I saw where it had won the Horace Mann Upstander award and that's what first prompted me to want to read it. The award committee was not amiss in giving the award to this author. He deserved it!
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5.0 out of 5 starsGet two copies
By Eric Luper on August 31, 2011
Format: Hardcover
There are some books I read and place on my shelf. There are others I read and almost immediately pass on to someone I think will get something from the book. GHETTO COWBOYS is definitely the latter. I was fortunate enough to get an advance copy of this novel and the minute I finished it was in the hands of a teacher who works in downtown Albany. And now, I wish I still had my copy!

As an author who has written about the world of horse racing, I can say that this book is accurate and the story is engaging. It also sheds light on a not-so-well-known and utterly fascinating facet of the horse world: urban riding. Great book from the gate to the wire!
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4.0 out of 5 starsI learned something new!
By Samantha McManus on January 30, 2013
Format: Hardcover
When Cole's mother finds out he has missed four weeks of school and will have to attend summer school to avoid failing, she takes extreme action. She drives Cole from his home in Detroit to an inner city neighborhood in Philadelphia, leaving him with a father he never knew. Cole's first encounter with his father is watching him shoot an injured and dying horse, right in the middle of the Philly street. Horses in Philly? As Cole's anger and confusion beings to clear, he learns about his father and the "ghetto cowboys" that rescue old racehorses bound for the slaughterhouse and use them to save kids from the street gangs and drugs that are part of their daily lives. When his dad and the cowboys find themselves up against a city that wants to take their land and build a mall, Cole discovers that he wants to help and stands up with his father in protest to save the horses and what they represent to the inner city kids. G. Neri was inspired to write this book after reading an article in LIFE about horse riding clubs in urban areas. As he says, "...truth is stranger than fiction, but fiction can sometimes dig into that truth a bit more clearly." You can read more about G. Neri and the urban horse riding clubs at [...] (click on the links on the left bottom of the page). Despite the "ghetto speak" such as "I be doin'...", etc. this is a really nice read that I think middle schoolers will enjoy.
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5.0 out of 5 starsRutgers University Project on Economics and Children
By Yana V. Rodgers on August 29, 2011
Format: Hardcover
It seemed that this time, Cole's mother had thrown in the towel and given up on him. Cole had gotten himself into enough trouble to risk getting kicked out of school, or at least having to repeat seventh grade. Having reached the conclusion that she could no longer handle him, Cole's mother drove all the way from their Detroit home to Philadelphia to drop him off with his father, a man Cole had not seen since he was a baby.

Cole's tough-guy attitude in no way prepared him for what he encountered in Philly. Turns out his father, Harper, lived in an abandoned part of the city with a group of other black men caring for horses that had nowhere else to go but the slaughterhouse. Not only did these urban cowboys feed and shelter the horses in a couple of makeshift stables, they also provided the local youth with a safe zone where they could work rather than join the gangs. Cole arrived at a difficult time though, because city officials decided they wanted to reclaim the land in order to build a new mall and condos. Cole would need to decide between going back to his old behaviors or following a new path as a true cowboy.

This well-crafted novel, based on the real-life situations of urban black cowboys in North Philadelphia and the Brooklyn-Queens area, has both well-developed characters and an exciting plot. Moreover, the storyline is built around several economics themes, including the role of property rights in empowering productive activities and the power of incentives in influencing decisions. Ghetto Cowboy should not be missed.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsRead it!

A great book relevant for all ages, nationalities, backgrounds, and lifestyles. I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Read more

Published 3 months ago by CMD
3.0 out of 5 starsGood teen read

Good story, heart-wrenching as it is. Story could have been a little more fleshed out, but it's a good read for kids.

Published 6 months ago by K. Johnson
5.0 out of 5 starsA short but powerful story about Philadelphia's urban cowboys

Despite the age-old adage about not judging a book by its cover, there's a lot to be said about a catchy title. Read more

Published 6 months ago by Kenya Starflight
5.0 out of 5 starsGhetto cowboy

Really good adventure in this book probably the best book I've ever read I couldn't believe what happened in the book it was just amazing

Published 11 months ago by isaiah munoz
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

As promised

Published 19 months ago by corc54
5.0 out of 5 starsA wonderful book

This book was a surprise to me! I had never heard of the cowboys of Philadelphia. It was touching to see the way Cole's interaction with Boo gave him the confidence to stand up for... Read more

Published 20 months ago by MY Library
4.0 out of 5 starsFour Stars

kid school

Published 21 months ago by T. Burless
4.0 out of 5 starsGhetto Cowboy

This was a great book. I rated it four stars only because the foul language was a little much. But this book made me think of ghettos way differently, and black people overall. Read more

Published on April 6, 2014 by keri hurley
3.0 out of 5 starsToo much angst.

Our family actually listened to the audiobook of Ghetto Cowboy. I really liked the idea behind the book along with the relevance and connection to the real cowboys in Philly, but... Read more

Published on March 28, 2014 by Kerri Still
5.0 out of 5 starsGhetto Cowboy Reveiw

I really liked this book, I would recommend it to people who like a good adventure. I like how boo (the horse) has feelings like a person, and shows them. Read more

Published on March 27, 2014 by KU

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