Two Little Savages

by Ernest Thompson Seton and Seton

Book Overview

This is one of the great classics of nature and boyhood by one of America's foremost nature experts. It presents a vast range of woodlore in the most palatable of forms, a genuinely delightful story. It will provide many hours of good reading for any child who likes the out-of-doors, and will teach him or her many interesting facts of nature, as well as a number of practical skills. It will be sure to awaken an interest in the outdoor world in...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0486209857
• ISBN13: 9780486209852
• Release Date: November 2011
• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.6" x 8.2"
• Age Range: 8 to 14 years
• Grade Range: Grades 3 to 9

Customer Reviews

It was central in forming my attitudes toward nature.

This book has an autobiographical feel, set in Ontario in the last quarter of the 19th century. It deals with the interaction between an adolescent loner "from town" and the people and environment of the back country through woodcraft, and with his growth in that context. Though it contains much of Seton's wonderful woodcraft and illustrations, it is most valuable for the story and the lessons about human nature and rural poverty (my own youth).My mother first read it to me from a tattered hand-me-down copy in the early 1950's when I was too young to read it for myself. It shaped my attitudes toward the natural world and helped me understand my own adolescence. To me, it is probably the single most important book I ever read.

Fun, fascinating, thoroughly enjoyable, informative!

I first read this book as a teenager, and have re-read it many times since then, discovering new levels of enjoyment as forty years have passed by. The story is set in the early or mid-1800's. Yan is the sickly city boy who goes to visit his cousin Sam in the country to recover his health. They gradually get better acquainted, making allowances for each other's differing experiences, perspectives and education. An enjoyable story and plot line unfolds, including conflict resolution, evaluating personalities, recognizing age and generation differences, and building trust. The book is absolutely filled to overflowing with fascinating woodlore information, skills and techniques, and countless drawings and sketches to explain or illustrate what the boys are discovering, doing, making or building. I have nothing but praise for this American Classic!

The story of two young boys and woodlore they learn.

The first copy I read was a hand-me-down from my father. In 1924, at age 11 he wrote in it...I pity the river,I pity the brook,I pity the crook,that steals this book. I read it the first time when I was 14 and have read it several time since then. It may be a little more difficult to read than more modern literature because of the writing style, but it is a wonderful story for anyone interested in wildlife, woodlore, Indians woodcraft, and young boys doing things on their own. Boy-scouting should be this good.

Believe it or not,, it can be a life-shaper...

Time: Nov.30,1936. Site: my high school. The Great Depression still gripped the U.S. A classmate apparently didn't have any lunch money so he offered me the hardback version of "Two Little Savages" for 10 cents. Although that was two-thirds of my lunch money, I bought it. Result: it led me into the woods, and so changed my life that, when I retired as a journalist, I moved to this mountain farm. That book now rests on my desk next to this computer, with its date and the notation: "Bought from Franklin Ramsey for 10 cents."

Charming and wonderful

I first read this book as a young boy in the early sixties. I then read it at least twenty times over the next ten years. eventually the library wanted it back. I have searched for a copy since reaching adulthood. It's the kind of book I want my children to read.