Few people have heard of Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls. He's the guy who wrote Where the Red Fern Grows, a book I refuse to read. Summer of the Monkeys is the tale of 14 year old Jayberry and his quest to catch some circus monkeys that escaped from a circus wagon traveling through the Ozarks. The reward money for capturing the 28 monkeys has him daydreaming about picking out his own pony and shooting his new .22, two things he insists every boy needs to have. He tries method after method to catch the monkeys, all while being teased and sassed by his parents and little sister Daisy, who has a crippled leg.
He loses his britches, gets his first taste of drunkenness, and learns a lesson about tenacity and persistent. Ultimately, Jayberry learns a tough lesson about family and priorities. Instead of buying his pony and gun, he puts the money towards his little sister's much needed operation after being cleverly enlightened to the idea by his grandfather who convinces Jayberry to purchase a crippled horse over all the others. While walking his crippled pony up to his house, his grandfather's clever plan hits Jayberry like a ton of bricks.
The whole book is so well written that it's like watching a movie with every word read. I read this book every year and I refuse to watch the movie because I know it will never compare to the one that goes through my head.
If you've never read it, I highly, HIGHLY recommend it.
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