Review: Old Ramon by Jack Schaefer

Synopsis: Old Ramon tells the timeless coming-of-age story of a young boy who spends a summer with an old shepherd in the Mojave Desert. He leaves his textbooks behind for real life lessons with Ramon as his mentor. He learns not only how to care for the sheep but how to overcome fear, how to face death and responsibility, and the difference between being alone and being lonely. Written in Schaefer’s charming and engaging style, the novel details a boy’s discovery of both the value of friendship and the hardship of life. (from the online description)

Review: Set in the west during a different time, this is a slow and gentle story. As Ramon and the boy journey with their flock, Ramon speaks to the boy about life. In particular, the boy's misconceptions about how Ramon leads the flock - and, Ramon speaks about his own mistakes. Ramon is not perfect. He is still learning how to teach and how to lead. As he teaches the boy, he learned.

Having said that, I will remark - this is a slow book. Slow and boring. Perhaps it is because of the subject matter, perhaps the era when the book was written - but it was extremely tedious to read. The lesson of the story was important but it was hard to get to as the story was slow. It might be too slow for children of the modern age.

Spoiler: Animals die. Beware of this if you are reading it to young or tender-hearted readers (or, like me, cry when all the animals die)

Bookmarks: 3 of 5

Awards: Newbery Honor (1961)

ISBN: 978-0826-3-5764-9
Year Published: 1960
Date Finished: 5-6-2018
Pages: 102