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Summer of the Monkeys
From the author of the beloved classic Where the Red Fern Grows comes a timeless adventure about a boy who discovers a tree full of monkeys.
The last thing fourteen-year-old Jay Berry Lee expects to find while trekking through the Ozark Mountains of Oklahoma is a tree full of monkeys. But then Jay learns from his grandpa that the monkeys have escaped from a traveling circus, and there’s a big reward for the person who finds and returns them.
His family could really use the money, so Jay sets off, determined to catch them. But by the end of the summer, Jay will have learned a lot more than he bargained for—and not just about monkeys.
From the beloved author of Where the Red Fern Grows comes another memorable adventure novel filled with heart, humor, and excitement.
Honors and Praise for Wilson Rawls� Where the Red Fern Grows:
A School Library Journal Top 100 Children’s Novel
An NPR Must-Read for Kids Ages 9 to 14
Winner of 4 State Awards
Over 7 million copies in print!
�A rewarding book . . . [with] careful, precise observation, all of it rightly phrased.� �The New York Times Book Review
�One of the great classics of children’s literature . . . Any child who doesn’t get to read this beloved and powerfully emotional book has missed out on an important piece of childhood for the last 40-plus years.� —Common Sense Media
�An exciting tale of love and adventure you’ll never forget.� �School Library Journal
The last thing fourteen-year-old Jay Berry Lee expects to find while trekking through the Ozark Mountains of Oklahoma is a tree full of monkeys. But then Jay learns from his grandpa that the monkeys have escaped from a traveling circus, and there’s a big reward for the person who finds and returns them.
His family could really use the money, so Jay sets off, determined to catch them. But by the end of the summer, Jay will have learned a lot more than he bargained for—and not just about monkeys.
From the beloved author of Where the Red Fern Grows comes another memorable adventure novel filled with heart, humor, and excitement.
Honors and Praise for Wilson Rawls� Where the Red Fern Grows:
A School Library Journal Top 100 Children’s Novel
An NPR Must-Read for Kids Ages 9 to 14
Winner of 4 State Awards
Over 7 million copies in print!
�A rewarding book . . . [with] careful, precise observation, all of it rightly phrased.� �The New York Times Book Review
�One of the great classics of children’s literature . . . Any child who doesn’t get to read this beloved and powerfully emotional book has missed out on an important piece of childhood for the last 40-plus years.� —Common Sense Media
�An exciting tale of love and adventure you’ll never forget.� �School Library Journal
290 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1976
809 people are currently reading
7,640 people want to read
About the author
Wilson Rawls
26books969followers Wilson Rawls was born on September 24, 1913, in the Ozark country of Scraper, Oklahoma. His mother home-schooled her children, and after Rawls read Jack London's canine-centered tale Call of the Wild, he decided to become a writer.
But the Great Depression hit the United States in 1929, and Rawls left home to find work. His family moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico in 1935, and he came home each fall to work and hunt. He wrote stories while he traveled, but his lack of formal education hampered his grammar, and he could not sell anything. In 1958, he gave up on his dream and burned all his work. He later revealed his literary desires to his wife, Sophie, and she encouraged him to keep writing.
In a three-week burst, Rawls wrote Where the Red Fern Grows, a highly autobiographical and poignant account of a boy, his two hounds, and raccoon-hunting in the Ozark Mountains. His wife edited his grammar and, after serialization in the "Saturday Evening Post," Doubleday published the novel in 1961. By the late 1960s, word-of-mouth helped the book become a classic for young readers. Rawls wrote (and Sophie edited) one more book, The Summer of the Monkeys, in 1976. This, too, became a classic. Rawls died in 1984 in Idaho Falls, Idaho.
But the Great Depression hit the United States in 1929, and Rawls left home to find work. His family moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico in 1935, and he came home each fall to work and hunt. He wrote stories while he traveled, but his lack of formal education hampered his grammar, and he could not sell anything. In 1958, he gave up on his dream and burned all his work. He later revealed his literary desires to his wife, Sophie, and she encouraged him to keep writing.
In a three-week burst, Rawls wrote Where the Red Fern Grows, a highly autobiographical and poignant account of a boy, his two hounds, and raccoon-hunting in the Ozark Mountains. His wife edited his grammar and, after serialization in the "Saturday Evening Post," Doubleday published the novel in 1961. By the late 1960s, word-of-mouth helped the book become a classic for young readers. Rawls wrote (and Sophie edited) one more book, The Summer of the Monkeys, in 1976. This, too, became a classic. Rawls died in 1984 in Idaho Falls, Idaho.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,305 reviews
January 11, 2020
I'm ashamed that it's taken me so many years to start reading Wilson Rawls books. I'm genuinely surprised that none of my schools had this as a class read. This is a great book for a novel study, for teaching voice, setting, use of language, point of view, etc. It has a great lesson without being at all preachy. Just a wonderful, wonderful book.
However, I can see how some people have issues with it. There are stereotypes for women always being nosey, overprotective and only show his (the main character’s) female family members as home makers. These issues didn't bother me though. This book is written from the perspective of a 14 year old boy, so of course he's going to find his younger twin sister, Daisy, nosey and annoying since she enjoys teasing him constantly. Also, What mother isn't overprotective of her child when they said they're going out into a wild area where he, other hunters, and moonshiners (who may be breaking the law for they wouldn’t need to hide it outdoors) are the only individuals that go to this area? My mom would for sure not have been okay with these plans. She still tells me to drive carefully and slowly whenever I get ready to leave the house or is sitting besides in me in the passenger seat, and I've been driving for 10 years now including while she sleeps on road trips haha. This was in the late 1800s in Cherokee Nation Oklahoma. The area the Lees live in is farming country. During this time and area, women were homemakers or helped in family stores, which is what the women and his family did. Daisy is crippled with a club foot so she can't go out and about like her brother can. It made sense that her mother would want to stay at home to watch out for her only daughter since she's good at nursing. I think people made too much out of these "issues" but that's just my opinion.
This book had one heck of an ending; I can't put into words how beautiful it was. It was the kind that makes your heart swell with happiness and your throat constrict till you think you may be in need of a tissue. But this is NOT a sad book, it is a touching and heartfelt story. I felt everyone's emotions at the end, I dare you not to feel them, too.
I'm so sad that Mr. Rawls only wrote 2 books in his life... I want more! I can be happy rereading his books throughout my life though.
However, I can see how some people have issues with it. There are stereotypes for women always being nosey, overprotective and only show his (the main character’s) female family members as home makers. These issues didn't bother me though. This book is written from the perspective of a 14 year old boy, so of course he's going to find his younger twin sister, Daisy, nosey and annoying since she enjoys teasing him constantly. Also, What mother isn't overprotective of her child when they said they're going out into a wild area where he, other hunters, and moonshiners (who may be breaking the law for they wouldn’t need to hide it outdoors) are the only individuals that go to this area? My mom would for sure not have been okay with these plans. She still tells me to drive carefully and slowly whenever I get ready to leave the house or is sitting besides in me in the passenger seat, and I've been driving for 10 years now including while she sleeps on road trips haha. This was in the late 1800s in Cherokee Nation Oklahoma. The area the Lees live in is farming country. During this time and area, women were homemakers or helped in family stores, which is what the women and his family did. Daisy is crippled with a club foot so she can't go out and about like her brother can. It made sense that her mother would want to stay at home to watch out for her only daughter since she's good at nursing. I think people made too much out of these "issues" but that's just my opinion.
This book had one heck of an ending; I can't put into words how beautiful it was. It was the kind that makes your heart swell with happiness and your throat constrict till you think you may be in need of a tissue. But this is NOT a sad book, it is a touching and heartfelt story. I felt everyone's emotions at the end, I dare you not to feel them, too.
I'm so sad that Mr. Rawls only wrote 2 books in his life... I want more! I can be happy rereading his books throughout my life though.
April 6, 2008
Disney ruined this book when they made it into a movie. The novel is vastly different and so much better. A great read aloud that will have you both laughing and crying. I like this book much better than, , which the author is more known for.
July 4, 2015
Oklahoma 1895. A young poor boy with a crippled little sister gets an opportunity to make things better when a group of monkeys escapes a circus wagon accident and he can make money by capturing them again.
The young boy and his dog is in for some laughter and serious life lessons when the monkeys outsmart them on a daily basis. His grampa teaches him the core values in life.
This is a kiddie's book - perhaps for readers up to twelve years of age. For me it was a wonderful, funny, deeply-moving-read. An easy read with great humor keeping the suspense glued to the characters. I loved it! Anybody can read it.
The young boy and his dog is in for some laughter and serious life lessons when the monkeys outsmart them on a daily basis. His grampa teaches him the core values in life.
This is a kiddie's book - perhaps for readers up to twelve years of age. For me it was a wonderful, funny, deeply-moving-read. An easy read with great humor keeping the suspense glued to the characters. I loved it! Anybody can read it.
August 2, 2021
So yes, when we read both Wilson Rawls' Where the Red Fern Grows and Summer of the Monkeys in grade six, while most of my classmates seemed to prefer the former, I for one enjoyed Summer of the Monkeys rather more, mostly because it had a less heartbreaking ending (with Jay Berry capturing the elusive circus escaped monkeys, his twin sister Daisy getting her necessary operation, and Jay also obtaining his two dearest wishes, a pony and a rifle, not to mention that Jay's relationship with his grandfather moved and cheered twelve year old me).
However and the above having been said, upon rereading Summer of the Monkeys, and while I still do in fact much prefer it story and theme-wise to Where the Red Fern Grows, I would also most definitely no longer consider it in any way the personal favourite it was in grade six. Yes, I have indeed and still enjoyed the glowing and realistic authorial descriptions of time and place, of Jay's tight-knit, loving family (and especially how bravely Daisy deals with and approaches her physical challenges and limitations), and the descriptions of Jay's many at first woefully unsuccessful attempts to capture the escaped chimpanzees are generally pretty much a scream and hilarious (considering that he gets himself drunk, that he loses his pants and so on and so on). But while as a child, I absolutely loved Jay's grandfather as a character, and considered him as altogther positively represented, upon rereading, I have found him much much too manipulative to truly and wholly like. For while I actually do agree that the reward money Jay receives for capturing the escaped monkeys should be spent on Daisy's operation, frankly, I also think that it would have been far better for the grandfather to have simply told Jake this in no uncertain terms rather than to use the subterfuge of the injured pony to guilt his grandson into giving up his reward money to the family. And therefore, while Summer of the Monkeys has certainly been a pleasant enough trip down memory lane, the to and for me rather annoyingly underhanded manipulations of the grandfather (while they do have I guess a positive and desired outcome and effect, namely that Jay decides to give his reward money to the family so that Daisy can get her crippled leg fixed), this does leave behind a somewhat bitter aftertaste, and although I would still totally recommend Summer of the Monkeys, I do leave a necessary caveat that how the grandfather basically actively and clandestinely maneuvers and guilts Jay into relinquishing his earned reward, this should, no this truly needs to be debated and discussed.
However and the above having been said, upon rereading Summer of the Monkeys, and while I still do in fact much prefer it story and theme-wise to Where the Red Fern Grows, I would also most definitely no longer consider it in any way the personal favourite it was in grade six. Yes, I have indeed and still enjoyed the glowing and realistic authorial descriptions of time and place, of Jay's tight-knit, loving family (and especially how bravely Daisy deals with and approaches her physical challenges and limitations), and the descriptions of Jay's many at first woefully unsuccessful attempts to capture the escaped chimpanzees are generally pretty much a scream and hilarious (considering that he gets himself drunk, that he loses his pants and so on and so on). But while as a child, I absolutely loved Jay's grandfather as a character, and considered him as altogther positively represented, upon rereading, I have found him much much too manipulative to truly and wholly like. For while I actually do agree that the reward money Jay receives for capturing the escaped monkeys should be spent on Daisy's operation, frankly, I also think that it would have been far better for the grandfather to have simply told Jake this in no uncertain terms rather than to use the subterfuge of the injured pony to guilt his grandson into giving up his reward money to the family. And therefore, while Summer of the Monkeys has certainly been a pleasant enough trip down memory lane, the to and for me rather annoyingly underhanded manipulations of the grandfather (while they do have I guess a positive and desired outcome and effect, namely that Jay decides to give his reward money to the family so that Daisy can get her crippled leg fixed), this does leave behind a somewhat bitter aftertaste, and although I would still totally recommend Summer of the Monkeys, I do leave a necessary caveat that how the grandfather basically actively and clandestinely maneuvers and guilts Jay into relinquishing his earned reward, this should, no this truly needs to be debated and discussed.
August 26, 2013
“Summer of the Monkeys� is the second of only two books by author Wilson Rawls. I’d always heard it was good, and I thoroughly enjoyed “Where the Red Fern Grows�, so it seemed like a good choice to pull from my ‘to-be-read shelf�.
“Summer of the Monkeys� was better than good, it was absolutely wonderful! (And this comment comes from me, a person not interested in animal stories!) No question, one of the best books I’ve read this summer!
This is a story of a young boy, Jay Berry, growing up many decades ago in the Ozark Mountains, who discovers a group of monkeys living in the trees down in the river bottom area of his family’s property. They have escaped a circus train and a reward is being given for the safe capture and return of the monkeys. The monetary reward is significant enough for 14 yr. old Jay Berry to try very, very hard, with the help of his grandfather, to capture them. The reward money would buy him the things he wants most, a pony and a .22 gun. The question: just how to do it? After all, monkeys are not your regular Ozark critters.
It is a wonderful, funny, tender story of Jay Berry’s many attempts to lure the lost monkeys. Along with strong family support, he learns a great deal in his quest and we readers get pulled in heart and soul. The last two chapters made me shed tears, very happy ones indeed! (It a very rare story that brings me to that point!)
I highly recommend “Summer of the Monkeys� to any class, 3rd grade on up, as a read aloud, or a perfect family read aloud. Kids will beg for just one more chapter, I’m sure! (I did � and remember I’m NOT an animal person!) This will be one of my strongest recommendations to the 4th graders I share books with every month.
So sorry Wilson Rawls wrote only two books � both 5+ stars from this retired elementary school librarian. A keeper in my personal library and another is on its way to my grandchildren’s school library.
I loved loved loved this book!!!
“Summer of the Monkeys� was better than good, it was absolutely wonderful! (And this comment comes from me, a person not interested in animal stories!) No question, one of the best books I’ve read this summer!
This is a story of a young boy, Jay Berry, growing up many decades ago in the Ozark Mountains, who discovers a group of monkeys living in the trees down in the river bottom area of his family’s property. They have escaped a circus train and a reward is being given for the safe capture and return of the monkeys. The monetary reward is significant enough for 14 yr. old Jay Berry to try very, very hard, with the help of his grandfather, to capture them. The reward money would buy him the things he wants most, a pony and a .22 gun. The question: just how to do it? After all, monkeys are not your regular Ozark critters.
It is a wonderful, funny, tender story of Jay Berry’s many attempts to lure the lost monkeys. Along with strong family support, he learns a great deal in his quest and we readers get pulled in heart and soul. The last two chapters made me shed tears, very happy ones indeed! (It a very rare story that brings me to that point!)
I highly recommend “Summer of the Monkeys� to any class, 3rd grade on up, as a read aloud, or a perfect family read aloud. Kids will beg for just one more chapter, I’m sure! (I did � and remember I’m NOT an animal person!) This will be one of my strongest recommendations to the 4th graders I share books with every month.
So sorry Wilson Rawls wrote only two books � both 5+ stars from this retired elementary school librarian. A keeper in my personal library and another is on its way to my grandchildren’s school library.
I loved loved loved this book!!!
January 25, 2018
Overflowing with folksy sentimentality, this is my all-time favorite “boy and his dog� story. The dog doesn't die, and the story has a completely happy ending! Things even come out well for the monkeys. Warm loving family interactions and chock full of mild, wholesome adventures, yet it's not boring. Rawls also wrote the more famous (and famously tragic) , which was originally published in 1961 but whose sales did not “take off� until the early 70's. I've never understood why that book is so much better known than � I much prefer stories where the dog doesn't die � but there's no accounting for popular taste.
This was published in 1976, and was a family favorite when I was a kid. Read this week to my mom as part of our “revisiting the old favorites� project and, despite her rapidly increasing weakness from the cancer, she stayed awake and seemed to enjoy it. Given her condition that's quite a commendation for a book.
This was published in 1976, and was a family favorite when I was a kid. Read this week to my mom as part of our “revisiting the old favorites� project and, despite her rapidly increasing weakness from the cancer, she stayed awake and seemed to enjoy it. Given her condition that's quite a commendation for a book.
February 13, 2025
Books read & reviewed: 6️⃣5️⃣🥖4️⃣0️⃣0️⃣
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4️⃣🌟, cool for a few reads
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WAit this is a movie :O
I absolutely loved the heartwarming idea and plot of this book, all his interactions with the monkeys and how he saves them and how the monkeys kinda saved his life too! The ending was very wholesomee--just what i needed for today and im glad that this book is actually read by people in schools! would ya look at that, i wish my elementary schools also did this haha. Honestly speaking we all needed that granpa character :3
✧･�: *✧･�:*Pre-Read✧･�: *✧･�:*
Mm
╔Ũ�
4️⃣🌟, cool for a few reads
—ĔĔĔĔĔĔĔĔĔĔĔĔĔĔĔĔĔĔĔĔ�
➕➖0️⃣1️⃣2️⃣3️⃣4️⃣5️⃣6️⃣7️⃣8️⃣9️⃣🔟✖️�
WAit this is a movie :O
I absolutely loved the heartwarming idea and plot of this book, all his interactions with the monkeys and how he saves them and how the monkeys kinda saved his life too! The ending was very wholesomee--just what i needed for today and im glad that this book is actually read by people in schools! would ya look at that, i wish my elementary schools also did this haha. Honestly speaking we all needed that granpa character :3
✧･�: *✧･�:*Pre-Read✧･�: *✧･�:*
Mm
June 28, 2020
Delightful children’s book. Every boy should be so fortunate to have a Grandpa like the one in the story.
June 21, 2023
Masterpiece! And all one of you who reads my reviews knows I’m very unkind. I’m even downright mean and nasty. I don’t just slap 5-star ratings on books like many reviewers who seem to give participation trophies to every piece of crap they read. I reserve it for only the best of the best. Summer of the Monkey’s is amongst the best of the best. It is perhaps the finest Young Readers book I’ve ever read, and indeed, one of the finest books of any genre that I’ve ever read. I don’t know how else to describe my thoughts on Wilson Rawls� classic story of a young boy who’s in search of a caravan of missing circus monkeys, but ends up finding himself instead.
Jay Berry Lee is a happy-go-lucky 14 year old boy living in 1890’s rural Oklahoma. He helps his Ma and Pa on the family farm and watches over his disabled twin sister, Daisy. During his spare time, he and his hound dog Rowdy like to go off into the “River Bottoms� to explore, hunt and just mess around in general. He sort of lives in a young boy’s paradise, where he can wander off and just get lost in whatever adventure he comes across. When word gets out that a circus train derailed nearby, and its monkeys got loose and were lost in the wilderness, Jay Berry sets his mind to rounding them up to collect a substantial cash reward for capturing them.
Jay Berry’s will is determined and unbreakable. He absolutely will not give up, despite several hilarious setbacks. He’s made up his mind that he will catch those dang monkeys and use the reward money to buy himself a .22 and a pony, and nothing’s going to stop him. But will his desire for the reward blur his vision to what’s really important in his life? This story explores the theme of sacrifice with heartfelt humor and love better than most “Grown Up� novels I’ve ever read.
I cannot recommend this book enough for readers of any age. Even if you read it aloud to your youngest readers, the language and themes are simple to understand. This is what literature is meant to be.
Jay Berry Lee is a happy-go-lucky 14 year old boy living in 1890’s rural Oklahoma. He helps his Ma and Pa on the family farm and watches over his disabled twin sister, Daisy. During his spare time, he and his hound dog Rowdy like to go off into the “River Bottoms� to explore, hunt and just mess around in general. He sort of lives in a young boy’s paradise, where he can wander off and just get lost in whatever adventure he comes across. When word gets out that a circus train derailed nearby, and its monkeys got loose and were lost in the wilderness, Jay Berry sets his mind to rounding them up to collect a substantial cash reward for capturing them.
Jay Berry’s will is determined and unbreakable. He absolutely will not give up, despite several hilarious setbacks. He’s made up his mind that he will catch those dang monkeys and use the reward money to buy himself a .22 and a pony, and nothing’s going to stop him. But will his desire for the reward blur his vision to what’s really important in his life? This story explores the theme of sacrifice with heartfelt humor and love better than most “Grown Up� novels I’ve ever read.
I cannot recommend this book enough for readers of any age. Even if you read it aloud to your youngest readers, the language and themes are simple to understand. This is what literature is meant to be.
January 19, 2023
2023 - �70’s Immersion Reading Challenge
Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls (1976; 1992 ed.) 283 pages.
READING LEVEL 4.8 AR POINTS 13.0
SETTING: Late 1800’s Oklahoma, in the Ozark’s
There’s a big reward, $2.00 per monkey, and $100 for the chimpanzee, for catching the 30 monkeys who escaped from a circus train that wrecked. This would give 14-year-old Jay Berry Lee enough money to buy some things he’s always wanted: a pony and a .22 rifle.
When you find yourself pausing at the end because you’re bawling your eyes out, I’d say this is a pretty darn good story. Every 5th grade child (or older…I sure enjoyed it) should either read this book or have their parents read it to them. It is a pretty lengthy book worth 13.0 AR points. But, I feel like this is the world we have left behind, and one our kids may never see.
Book-to-Movie
Summer of the Monkeys (1998), starring Corey Sevier as Jay Berry Lee, Katie Stuart as sister Daisy Lee, Michael Ontkean as their father, Leslie Hope as their mother Sarah Lee, and Wilford Brimley as Grandfather.
1/17/2023 - UPDATE:
I watched the movie. Horrible! The first thing you’ll see is Rowdy is not a hound dog in the movie. Nope! It’s some kind of white collie. They don’t hardly follow the storyline from the book, either, and the acting is subpar. Read the book!
Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls (1976; 1992 ed.) 283 pages.
READING LEVEL 4.8 AR POINTS 13.0
SETTING: Late 1800’s Oklahoma, in the Ozark’s
There’s a big reward, $2.00 per monkey, and $100 for the chimpanzee, for catching the 30 monkeys who escaped from a circus train that wrecked. This would give 14-year-old Jay Berry Lee enough money to buy some things he’s always wanted: a pony and a .22 rifle.
When you find yourself pausing at the end because you’re bawling your eyes out, I’d say this is a pretty darn good story. Every 5th grade child (or older…I sure enjoyed it) should either read this book or have their parents read it to them. It is a pretty lengthy book worth 13.0 AR points. But, I feel like this is the world we have left behind, and one our kids may never see.
Book-to-Movie
Summer of the Monkeys (1998), starring Corey Sevier as Jay Berry Lee, Katie Stuart as sister Daisy Lee, Michael Ontkean as their father, Leslie Hope as their mother Sarah Lee, and Wilford Brimley as Grandfather.
1/17/2023 - UPDATE:
I watched the movie. Horrible! The first thing you’ll see is Rowdy is not a hound dog in the movie. Nope! It’s some kind of white collie. They don’t hardly follow the storyline from the book, either, and the acting is subpar. Read the book!
July 9, 2023
Wow this was so much fun😁 I don't know that I have ever laughed more in a book😂😂 it's hilarious. Highly recommend😊
September 30, 2014
There are many great things about this story: the relationship between the boy and his grandfather and the beauty of self-sacrifice and perseverance and loving one another. Get the tissues! You'll cry! But, talk about convoluted faith--the author's mixing of Christ and an "Old Man of the Mountain" and prayers and wishes and fairy rings was frustrating and disappointing and left me not liking this book as much as I expected to.
May 29, 2024
Simply put, this is a story that will put a smile on your face the whole time you read it, and will leave you with that smile on your face for a long time after you finish! Jay Berry and Rowdy’s adventures, along with the novel’s heartwarming conclusion, made this a perfect read to kick off the beginning of summer!
March 20, 2015
I cannot believe I had never even heard of this till three days ago. All I can say is to everyone is read it. Young, Old, Middle Aged, read it.
Jay Berry is a Huckleberry Finn character, but instead of a river to get him into trouble he has a summer of monkeys that turn his world around and his family with him. He has a pretty awful time of it. What with monkeys running around and his sister's teasing.
Daisy has an imagination gone wild, she sees The Old Man of the Mountain and uses him to scare her brother into not hunting little rabbits, saying The Old Man will get him for hurting his creatures. Not quite sure what to believe Jay Berry goes along with her, just in case The Old Man is real.
Daisy does everything, from making her own hut and collecting little critters, nursing anything and everything to running nearly as fast as her brother on her crutch. I liked her ever so much!
I remember not reading Farmer Boy by Laura Ingles Wilder when I was younger because it was a boy and I thought it would be dull. Part of me thought the same of this. But just like I loved Farmer Boy and his escapades I loved Jay Berry's adventure, and they both had mischievous sisters.
This book had one of the best endings I've come across in a YA book, I can't put into words how beautiful it was. It was the kind that makes your heart swell with happiness and your throat constrict till you think you may be in need of a tissue. But this is NOT a sad book, but it is a touching and heartfelt story. I felt everyone's emotions at the end, I dare you not to feel them, too.
Jay Berry is a Huckleberry Finn character, but instead of a river to get him into trouble he has a summer of monkeys that turn his world around and his family with him. He has a pretty awful time of it. What with monkeys running around and his sister's teasing.
Daisy has an imagination gone wild, she sees The Old Man of the Mountain and uses him to scare her brother into not hunting little rabbits, saying The Old Man will get him for hurting his creatures. Not quite sure what to believe Jay Berry goes along with her, just in case The Old Man is real.
Daisy does everything, from making her own hut and collecting little critters, nursing anything and everything to running nearly as fast as her brother on her crutch. I liked her ever so much!
I remember not reading Farmer Boy by Laura Ingles Wilder when I was younger because it was a boy and I thought it would be dull. Part of me thought the same of this. But just like I loved Farmer Boy and his escapades I loved Jay Berry's adventure, and they both had mischievous sisters.
This book had one of the best endings I've come across in a YA book, I can't put into words how beautiful it was. It was the kind that makes your heart swell with happiness and your throat constrict till you think you may be in need of a tissue. But this is NOT a sad book, but it is a touching and heartfelt story. I felt everyone's emotions at the end, I dare you not to feel them, too.
Read
February 3, 2025My biggest guy asked me to read one of his favorite books. It reminded me so much of him- A wild boy with big dreams who’s capable of deep sacrifice ❤️
October 17, 2020
I laughed and I cried.
And it’s a children’s book....of all things.
What can I say?
And it’s a children’s book....of all things.
What can I say?
July 28, 2010
Summer of the Monkeys is one of my all time favorite books. The time period is in the late 1800's. It is about a 14 year old boy named Jay Berry who lives in the Ozark mountains. His life is full of adventure exploring in the river bottoms. His life is flipped upside down when he finds monkeys in the river bottoms. A train wreck allowed the monkeys to escape from the circus. There is a very large reward for the capture of the monkeys. Jay Berry sets out to capture these monkeys and get enough to buy a pony and a 22 rifle, his lifelong dream. His adventures are hilarious as he goes about trying to catch these monkeys. Daisy, Jay Berry's twin sister who has a crippled leg from birth is one of the main characters. She is kind and loving. She loves all the animals in the woods and doctors anyting that need is, including Jay Berry and his dog, Rowdy. Jay Berry's parents are poor people and don't have the money to get Daisy's leg fixed. One of my favorite passages from the book is right after Daisy finds a fairy ring and they all make a wish. Jay Berry asks his dad if he believes the wishes they made at the fairy ring will come true. His dad says:
" Son, that's a pretty hard question to answer. But I do beleive that any wish you make can come true if you help the wish. I don't think that the Lord meant for our lives to be so simple and easy that every time we wanted something, all we had to do was wish for it and we'd get it. I don't beleive that at all. If that were true, there would be alot of lazy people in this old world. No one would be working. Everyone would be wishing for what they needed or wanted.
"Papa," I asked, "how can you help a wish?"
"Oh, there are alot of ways," Papa said. "Hard work, faith, patience, and determination. I think prayer and really believing in your wish can help more than anything else."
This book is filled with endearing characters. Jay Berry's Grandpa, Daisy and his mother and father and Rowdy, Jay berry's dog.
This book is about family and what matters most in this life. I would highly recommend this book to all ages. I am kind of sad that I just finished reading this book to my youngest child. They all have loved it!
" Son, that's a pretty hard question to answer. But I do beleive that any wish you make can come true if you help the wish. I don't think that the Lord meant for our lives to be so simple and easy that every time we wanted something, all we had to do was wish for it and we'd get it. I don't beleive that at all. If that were true, there would be alot of lazy people in this old world. No one would be working. Everyone would be wishing for what they needed or wanted.
"Papa," I asked, "how can you help a wish?"
"Oh, there are alot of ways," Papa said. "Hard work, faith, patience, and determination. I think prayer and really believing in your wish can help more than anything else."
This book is filled with endearing characters. Jay Berry's Grandpa, Daisy and his mother and father and Rowdy, Jay berry's dog.
This book is about family and what matters most in this life. I would highly recommend this book to all ages. I am kind of sad that I just finished reading this book to my youngest child. They all have loved it!
January 29, 2010
Hands down, this is one of the best books I've ever read. I don't know why I've never read it before and neither have any of my children. Thomas came home from school last week and said he had started it in class. Then I went to a RS night on children's literature and one of my girlfriends there also recommended it. I picked it up and read it in just 3 short sessions, and loved it. This book will make an excellent read aloud with children at about the age of 8 or 9, when they are starting to have hopes and dreams and are able to do things on their own.
The opening paragraph sums it up: "I got mixed up with a bunch of monkeys and all of my happiness flew right out the window. Those monkeys all but drove me out of my mind."
This book made me laugh, and made me cry - it really does touch your heart.
The opening paragraph sums it up: "I got mixed up with a bunch of monkeys and all of my happiness flew right out the window. Those monkeys all but drove me out of my mind."
This book made me laugh, and made me cry - it really does touch your heart.
November 3, 2015
Summer of the Monkeys is my new favorite book. How in the world was I a school librarian for so many years without reading this book. What a great book for a novel study, for teaching voice, setting, use of language, point of view, etc. I want to run out and read it to somebody right now. Too bad I'm retired. It has a great lesson without being at all preachy. Just a wonderful, wonderful book. I wish Wilson Rawls had written more than two books.
Some of my favorite lines:
It was so still in our kitchen you could have heard a dream walking.
Her hair was the color of sycamore leaves after the first frost.
My grandpa was one of those old, slow-moving, boy-loving kind of grandpas.
Read this book and then share it with children.
Some of my favorite lines:
It was so still in our kitchen you could have heard a dream walking.
Her hair was the color of sycamore leaves after the first frost.
My grandpa was one of those old, slow-moving, boy-loving kind of grandpas.
Read this book and then share it with children.
May 10, 2024
This was a fun read when I was a 5th grader and I have to say the nostalgia of it still made me give it 4 stars. I wish more kids knew about this book because it was such a fun read when I was younger.
Jay Berry lives in the Ozark's and he runs those mountains daily. They are his backyard and he knows them better then anyone does. He loves going down to the bottoms with his dog Rowdy. One day he went to the bottoms and heard a crazy noise from the trees and when he looked up he saw 30 monkeys in the trees. The circus was going through on a train and it wrecked and monkeys got away. They are offering a reward for the capture of each monkey.
The story takes on fun tale when we get to read about all of the ways Jay Berry goes about trying to catch those smart circus monkeys.
Jay Berry lives in the Ozark's and he runs those mountains daily. They are his backyard and he knows them better then anyone does. He loves going down to the bottoms with his dog Rowdy. One day he went to the bottoms and heard a crazy noise from the trees and when he looked up he saw 30 monkeys in the trees. The circus was going through on a train and it wrecked and monkeys got away. They are offering a reward for the capture of each monkey.
The story takes on fun tale when we get to read about all of the ways Jay Berry goes about trying to catch those smart circus monkeys.
February 10, 2011
My kids really enjoy this book. It seems to hit all ages pretty well. I am enjoying it again, and my youngest two (who were bored while reading Seventh Son) are now really enjoying this book. Even my oldest kids enjoy listening in.
Wilson Rawls is a great story teller, and he writes a lot of situations in this book that make the kids laugh out loud. The suspense is great too. The kids hate it when a chapter ends and we might be done for the night. "read on!" they all say.
Wilson Rawls is a great story teller, and he writes a lot of situations in this book that make the kids laugh out loud. The suspense is great too. The kids hate it when a chapter ends and we might be done for the night. "read on!" they all say.
March 27, 2020
I read Red Fern some years back and remember it as being quite good. I was happy to find the author had written another book, but alas found this one disappointing. The story seemed intended to be sweet, but the story line was fanciful at best. The dialogue was stilted and repetitive and the dialect became tiring. No explanation on how the family was able to afford the pony and the gun after pooling all their funds for Daisy's surgery.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 26, 2024
Read aloud with the boys. We all enjoyed spending time with Jay Berry, Rowdy, and their family over the summer. We liked the close family dynamics, the descriptions of nature and the river bottoms, and the friendship between Jay Berry and his dog. I will add that I edited/skipped over parts while I read aloud because at times there were repetitive disparaging tiffs between the boys and girls in the family. I'm very glad the boys and I shared this story and always appreciate the memories we make reading together.
January 20, 2025
It was my favorite book when I was 9. I read it to my 9 year old daughter and now it’s her favorite book.
August 1, 2024
One of my favorite read aloud books of all time!
October 31, 2020
At the end of the 19th century, Jay Berry Lee lives with his parents and twin sister on a farm in Oklahoma. Money is tight but life is good. Yes, he has farm chores but much of his time is his own, and Jay Berry roams the area with his faithful hound, Rowdy. A railway accident involving a circus train results in a group of monkeys (plus one chimpanzee) escaping into the river bottom near the Lee farm. These are trained circus performers, and the reward motivates Jay Berry to capture the animals so he can finally get the pony and gun he’s longed for.
This was just a delightful boy-and-his dog adventure tale. I loved the relationship between Jay Berry and his grandpa, as well as the way he interacted with his parents and sister. But the real joy in the book is the way he goes about trying to capture the monkeys. Every fail-safe idea he has results in some disaster or another, some with rather hilarious consequences. But he’s determined, and his heart is in the right place.
I could not help but think of my father and my brothers while reading this. When growing up we spent many hours in the woods, exploring, “hunting,� fishing and just observing nature. I loved those long days outdoors (and some nights as well).
This was just a delightful boy-and-his dog adventure tale. I loved the relationship between Jay Berry and his grandpa, as well as the way he interacted with his parents and sister. But the real joy in the book is the way he goes about trying to capture the monkeys. Every fail-safe idea he has results in some disaster or another, some with rather hilarious consequences. But he’s determined, and his heart is in the right place.
I could not help but think of my father and my brothers while reading this. When growing up we spent many hours in the woods, exploring, “hunting,� fishing and just observing nature. I loved those long days outdoors (and some nights as well).
April 12, 2011
I bought this book to read to my 10 year old son. I didnt realize this book would become one of my favorites! I laughed so hard I cried, and I cried so hard I laughed!! Yes my sweet oldest son loved making fun of me! This book is such a wonderful story about a boy that is from a poor family, he goes on an adventure with his dog catching monkeys that got loose from the circus. His relationship with his family is such a great story all in itself, and will make you remember special times with your grandpa. Wilson Rawls should have written more books! We as a society got jipped! Shame on the publisher that turned Where the Red Fern Grows away and told him he is not a good author!! Thank God his wife made him go to another publisher after she found the book in the attic many years later... If you are looking for a great adventure to read to your kids, or looking for a great adventure for yourself this would be a great one for you!! I highly recommend it!!
September 26, 2011
Set in the late 1800's, this is a story about a young boy named Jay Berry and his run in with a troop of monkeys that have gotten loose in the woods near his home. He tries everything under the sun to capture the monkeys because there is a big reward. The monkeys seem to be able to outwit him at every turn, that is until the night of the big storm.
The author, who also wrote "Where the Red Fern Grows", knows how to keep interest alive. Jay Berry and his loyal dog, Rowdy, learn something about monkeys each time the perfect plan fails. And by the end of the summer, he has not only learned a great deal about monkeys, but his learned a great lesson about life too.
The author, who also wrote "Where the Red Fern Grows", knows how to keep interest alive. Jay Berry and his loyal dog, Rowdy, learn something about monkeys each time the perfect plan fails. And by the end of the summer, he has not only learned a great deal about monkeys, but his learned a great lesson about life too.
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October 26, 2017My book is Summer Of The Monkeys by Wilson Rawls. It's about this boy Jay Berry Lee and he lives in hard working underclass family. Jay Berry is just your average farm boy until he realizes that there is valuable circus monkey down in the swamps on his land. He attempted to catch these monkeys multiple times with the help of his grandpa. Jay Berry knew that if he catches these monkeys he could get himself something nice or help out his family with the money. This book takes place in the 1800's rural Oklahoma. I liked this book it was probably one of my favorite books. I highly recommend this book to people that like adventures and exciting books.
March 3, 2016
I loved this book. I love reading children classics. And since I work in Barnes and Noble in the kids department, it is very easy for me to find this wonderful reads. Loved this book. Definitively recommend it!!
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