The Red Pony

Steinbeck, John

ISBN 10: 081241652X ISBN 13: 9780812416527

Publisher: Perfection Learning, 1993

Synopsis

Raised on a ranch in northern California, Jody is well-schooled in the hard work and demands of a rancher's life. He is used to the way of horses, too; but nothing has prepared him for the special connection he will forge with Gabilan, a hot-tempered pony his father gives him. With Billy Buck, the hired hand, Jody tends and trains his horse, restlessly anticipating the moment he will sit high upon Gabilan's saddle. But when Gabilan falls ill, Jody discovers there are still lessons he must learn about the ways of nature and, particularly, the ways of man.

About this title

Review:

Steinbeck is to be judged by the highest standards (New York Herald Tribune)

From the Back Cover:

'A red pony colt was looking at him out of the stall. Its tense ears were forward and a light of disobedience was in its eyes. Its coat was rough and thick as an Airedale's fur and its mane was long and tangled.'

Jody Tiflin is a ten-year-old boy, living on his father's ranch. One day his father brings home a small pony. He's Jody's, if the boy will learn to feed, clean, stable and care for him. But Jody learns, through the colt, and through his other adventures on the ranch, that with responsibility can come sacrifice and pain. Joy may swiftly turn to tragedy. And he also discover that the simplicities of childhood must eventually turn into the complications of adulthood.

The Red Pony is Steinbeck's brilliant, and sometimes brutal, celebration of adolescence.

About this edition

• Publisher: Perfection Learning
• Publication date: 1993
• ISBN 10: 081241652X
• ISBN 13: 9780812416527
• Binding: Library Binding
• Number of pages: 100