Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 39
 Amazing October 29, 2009
Rich Rogers (Utah)
This was, hands down, the best book I read in 2008.
Yes, it is a boy and his dog story. There was nothing Skip couldn't do--play football, baseball (at the very least interrupt an important game), find young Willie almost anywhere, and with Willie's help, even drive the car.
There are two things that made this such a good read: The slice of history it gives--growing up in the south in the 1930s and 1940s. And the realness of it. The history is so important. And while there is a sentimentality to it, the emotions felt real. I never once felt the author was manipulating me. When the inevitable ending comes, the tears were well-earned and genuine.
Some have complained there is no direct timeline. But a memoir doesn't need that. Memoirs are revisitng memories, and just like us, they often come unorganized by a specific timeline.
I love this book and have made it a point to give it to many people.
A beautiful book, written thru the eyes and innocence of youth July 9, 2009
Ace (East Coast)
I lived through this book, more than I read it.
It was a beautiful experience, a walk back in time, to a slow sweet Southern boyhood with a favorite dog. A dog that was a best friend, as well as a companion.
Willie Morris opened his heart and soul to Skip -- teaching him great tricks and how to play football (and understand the play calls too!).
Skip's driving abilities were top notch too -- causing more than one old timer to fall off a rocking chair when Skip "drove" by!!
Then there was Willie's first love, Rivers APplewhite, who tried to nurse a little emaciated kitten back to health, with Skip's adoring attention. And Willie's buddies, Pee Wee, Muttonhead and the unforgettable Ben, who helped Willie make some totally unforgettable (LOL) Chocolate chip cookies.
In a way, this book reminded me a little of Truman Capote's "A Christmas Story", with its centralized and very special characters inhabiting the pages, and the slow sypury sweet Southern days when kids had fun just be being kids and using their imaginations, and had no end of places to explore.
My heart broke when I read about Willie driving away to attend school overseas and looking back to see his forever-faithful friend lying under a tree watching him, and receding into the distance -- but remaining forever in his heart.
Very well written. Very nostalgic. Written with the kind of love that does not diminish with the passage of time.
Made me go home and gently hug my cats (who don't play football but still love to chase and tackle)
A wonderful book by the late Willie Morris April 10, 2009
Booklover (Connecticut)
I came late to this book, but - wow! - it is wonderful. Willie Morris transports you to the time and place of his youth and to his friendship with a dog that every kid should have had when growing up. You'll love Skip, and like every dog or pet you may have loved in your life, he'll break your heart when he dies.
Added to my All Time Fav Books November 3, 2008
David L. Perry (Grew up in Williamston, Michigan, now in Brunwick, GA)
To anyone who has a dog, read this book, share with your family and friends. The story of loyalty in this book explains the love a boy and his dog share.
If you have a young reader in mind, give it to him or her. You will be glad you did.
 About a boy and his dog... January 23, 2007
Tiffany DeBrock (Atlanta, Ga United States)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This book is the story of Willie Morris' childhood companion, a dog named Skip. Willie recounts his adolescent years and all the fond memories of his dog and friends as they grew up together in small town Mississippi. The story is heartwarming and the author paints a very clear picture of all the shenanigans, good times and bad that he and his dog had together over the years. I liked this book; but I think a male reader would appreciate the bond between a boy and his dog more than I can.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 39
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