Author: Neil McNaughton Illustrator: Elaine Power
From the inside front flap: The story of a sheep dog in the South Island of New Zealand, from puppyhood to maturity. This is one "out of the bag" - the sort of unexpected happening that surprises even the most blase of publishers - most of whom have given up hoping for an animal book as good as this. The whole story is completely credible even to those who know nothing of New Zealand's South Island; for the background is right, the people are right, and the animals are right. Added to this is the author's remarkable perception, his understanding, his considerable personal experience of working dogs. Along with the pleasure of reading a fast-moving adventure story which ranges up and down the country, there is the solid satisfaction of learning a lot about sheep farming, and the almost uncanny powers of the very special kind of dog that controls other animals by a combination of will-power, intelligence and mobility. This book will be thoroughly enjoyed by almost everyone who doesn't actually hate animals."
Listen to the podcast review about this book...
Podcast Transcript
(0:00) Hello, my name is Kirsten Edwards, and I am owner of the Living Books blog for New Zealand Children's Books. I have been running this blog for a few years now, and I'm building up a review collection of New Zealand children's books, mainly published before 1990. I've decided to start this podcast because basically to save time, I have read tens, if not hundreds, of New Zealand children's books. And just getting the time to sit down and type the review up on my computer is proving a challenge. So I thought if I could just say the review into a podcast quickly, that would be a real time saver. So I'm gonna try this instead I will still put details of the book and pictures on my blog, and then put a link through to this podcast. There will also be a transcript so you can read this podcast if you prefer to. (1:02)
Today I'm looking at the book Tat, the Story of a New Zealand Sheepdog by Neil McNaughton. This book was published in 1970 by Collins. I'll just read the blue from the inside front cover flap.
The story of a sheepdog in the South Island of New Zealand from puppyhood to maturity. This is the one out of the bag, the sort of unexpected happening that surprises even the most blasé of publishers, most of whom have given up hoping for an animal book as good as this. The whole story is completely credible) even to those who know nothing of New Zealand's South Island. For the background is right, the people are right, the animals are right. Added to this is the author's remarkable perception, his understanding, his very considerable personal experience of working dogs. Along with the pleasure of reading a fast-moving adventure story which ranges up and down the country, there is a solid satisfaction (2:01) of learning a lot about sheep farming and the almost uncanny powers of the very special kind of dog that controls other animals by a combination of willpower, intelligence and mobility. This book will be thoroughly enjoyed by almost everyone (2:15) who doesn't actually hate animals.(2:18)
And I totally agree with this blurb. The book is wonderful. It is a wonderful read. I was totally emotionally invested in this book from the first page to the last. It has got humour. It has emotional ups and downs. And by the end of it, you are totally in love with Tat, the working sheep dog. He goes through lots of adventures. Some of them are very sad and cruel, and he also goes through some wonderful highs and has some wonderful owners. (2:51)
People have called this classic New Zealand story, the black beauty of New Zealand literature. And I can see why because it does make you aware of how New Zealand animals are treated on working farms. It is brilliant.(3:08)
So basically the story starts, Tat is a little pup that is born on a sheep farm. A sheep farm. Robin and Margaret Sloan are two children on the farm that save the dog and bring it back to life. The mother dies while giving birth to the pup. And the pup doesn't have much chance of living herself, but they save him. It's a boy actually, Tat's a boy. They name him, feed him, save him, and raise him. And what they discover as he gets older is that he has that special eye for rounding up animals as he rounds up all the chickens in the yard. So they decide to secretly train him to be a hunter way. And they think they will surprise their father in a year's time at the trials. But their father, unbeknownst to them, sells the dog, thinking, yeah, he's a good pup. Someone could train him up as a good working dog. He doesn't know that he is actually an excellent dog with a really good eye. So he sells the dog and so begins Tat's adventures around the South Island, either running away or going from owner to owner, learning about life, trusting or not trusting man. And I'm not gonna tell you what those are because I don't wanna spoil the story, (4:39)
But one particular character that really stood out to me that I really liked was a man called Bluey Macphail. He was a culler collecting deer and pigs. And he discovers Tat severely injured in the bush and he takes him back to his hut, he nurses him back to health. And Bluey has a pet wild pig and the two become friends. And that's part of the story and I enjoyed that.
I highly recommend this as a family read-aloud. It is a beautiful story. Very well written, really well paced. It's a Kiwi classic. Just one content consideration, there is a lot of violence towards animals in the story. So if you have a young, sensitive reader, I wouldn't recommend that to them. Maybe wait till they're older. That's the only thing. Apart from that, it's a great story. (5:39)
And the edition that I have is Hardback, published by Collins in 1970. And it is beautifully illustrated with black and white drawings by Elaine Power, who does all the wonderful native drawings that you often see. So yeah, if you can get that edition, that's nice, but there's plenty of paperback editions around and secondhand shops as well. (6:03)
Okay, thank you for listening to my podcast and I will put a new one up soon. All the links for the book and pictures of it will be on the blog and the link will be in the description. Okay, thanks for your time. Bye.
Copies are available online. Book Express is an excellent New Zealand online secondhand retailer. Otherwise, check the link below.
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