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17th out of 51 books
—
43 voters
Follow My Leader
After Jimmy is blinded in an accident with a firecracker, he has to relearn all the things he used to know. With the help of a determined therapist, he learns to read Braille and to use a cane. Then he's given the chance to have a guide dog. Learning to work with Leader is not easy, but Jimmy tries harder than he ever has before.
Paperback, 192 pages
Published
December 1st 1994
by Puffin
(first published 1957)
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May 23, 2008
Crystal
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
parents and kids everywhere
Shelves:
classic-youth-stories
I LOVED this book when I was a kid. Like many others, I'm sure, I imagined and even pretended what it was like to be blind. I learned more about Braille and guide dogs. It was a real opener for a young child about the world of the vision-impaired, and just an involving and inspiring story of what it takes to succeed despite terrible things in your (or in this case, Jimmy's) life. I think kids should read more books that make them think what it's like to be in someone else's shoes. I will definit...more
Jimmy learns Braille and how to work with a seeing eye dog. I was transfixed.
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I really enjoyed this book. It was a fast and kind of easy read, but it was sweet. It is about a boy who goes blind and the struggles he has. He gets a guide-dog. I hav to say that I love dogs and I have studied them I lot. I've even considered training guide-dogs. This book helped me understand the blind more. I have a very good friend who was born blind. He is really cool, but when I first met him I was really nervous I was going to affend him. I can relate to Jimmy's friends. Guide-dogs are a...more
Follow My Leader
Follow my Leader By: James Garfield. I think this is a great book that everybody would enjoy, and benefit a lot from reading it. It is about a younger boy who decides to mess around with his friends one day. When a major accident happens, he becomes blind. So the main part of the story is about the boy having to learn how to deal with life being blind, learning how to do different things in order to get along in the world, like reading brail, using a Seeing Eye dog, and hanging...more
Follow my Leader By: James Garfield. I think this is a great book that everybody would enjoy, and benefit a lot from reading it. It is about a younger boy who decides to mess around with his friends one day. When a major accident happens, he becomes blind. So the main part of the story is about the boy having to learn how to deal with life being blind, learning how to do different things in order to get along in the world, like reading brail, using a Seeing Eye dog, and hanging...more
A book from my childhood. It is one I still remember reading many years ago. It had the most impact on me as a child and although I couldn't remember most of the specifics, I DO remember it helped develop in me a sense of compassion, empathy and understanding of others which has served me well over the years. When I saw that it had been re-printed once again, I decided that I wanted to see what about the book had such an impact at that age so I re-read it. In retrospect, it is a book that is bes...more
I remember checking this book out at the library time and time again, until the day it went missing and I couldn't check it out again, then began my search for it for my own collection. Went to my local book shop and placed my order, but at that point in time it wasn't in publication and no word for when it would be. A year or so later the book shop managed to track down a copy it was in close to mint condition as I could hope for.
I don't know how many times I've read the book, but I do know th...more
I don't know how many times I've read the book, but I do know th...more
I remember that Disney made a movie based on this book, but never got around to reading it until this week when the title jumped into my head as the result of a "stumper" post on pubyac. I was looking for a book to add to my 4th grade book talk list and thought this would be a good candidate--and it is! I feared the language would date it (it was written in the late 50's) but I was pleasantly surprised--while the boys in the story would probably refer to eachother as "pal" instead of "dude" they...more
I remember this book about a boy who is blinded by an errant firecracker as one of my childhood favorites. I decided to read it now to decide if it was age-appropriate for any of my grandchildren. I can now safely say that it is still a favorite and that I would recommend it for probably ages 8 and above. I had a hard time deciding how many stars to give it -- it should probably be 3 and a half stars -- it definitely is not as well written as other 3- and 4-star adult books I've rated, but ratin...more
This book is about a boy who is blinded by a firecracker and then gets a seeing eye dog. As a kid, this book both fascinated and frightened me, because I loved to learn how blind people crossed the street, or picked out matching outfits. But I was also very afraid of becoming blind, especially after a short-lived attempt to teach myself braille. I will always love this book, though, because it was a gift from my mom, who read it herself as a girl.
Dec 15, 2008
Anne
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Anyone who likes animals or is curious about seeing-eye dogs or being blind.
This book is highly recommended! Thoughtfully and realistically written, it helps the reader understand the struggles and accomplishments of someone who is learning how to live with a handicap, personalizing the experience for us. The development of the relationship between the seeing-eye dog and his person is especially interesting and touching.
This book was written in 1957, but when I read it in the late 80s, it didn't seem dated at all. You could feel Jimmy's frustration and at times you got frustrated with him even though you saw how hard adjusting to this new way of life was. Watching him learn to work with Leader and come to trust him, was something I never forgot, and I think I loved that dog as much as Jimmy did.
This book was a great insight into a world that I will probably never enter. It felt real, and was completely accessib...more
As a kid I would read this book over and over (which is why I gave it four stars) because I thought it was fascinating how someone puts their life back together after a life altering tragedy. I am still intrigued by these themes in books. (I think I also thought I should find out what it was like to be blind since I have had the irrational notion since childhood that one day I will also become blind.) The writing is fairly elementary (RL 4) and probably won't appeal to adults - I know I was disa...more
Wilson and I read this and it was fun to read it through adult eyes. I read it when I was about Wilson's age and was really affected by the story. Written in 1959, this is the sweet and sympathetic story of a boy who loses his sight in an accident and then learns how to live again with his guide dog. I remember thinking some of the vernacular was funny--the boys tell each other to 'dry up' and call each other 'measly'. I had to explain to Wilson what some of those things meant, but that's not a...more
All right, we all know how anti-issues book I am. But here's the thing: I have a theory that issue books are necessary at times. They're the groundbreakers. The topics become acceptable so other authors can take them and run. And sometimes it's good to have a book that presents the facts of an issue in a way kids can understand.
Follow My Leader was one of those books I just discovered on the shelves as a kid. I wasn't looking for it in particular. I read it dozens of times. Yes, the character (J...more
Follow My Leader was one of those books I just discovered on the shelves as a kid. I wasn't looking for it in particular. I read it dozens of times. Yes, the character (J...more
I was afraid to read this book for a while when I was a kid, because the beginning of the book and the description of Jimmy losing his sight in a fireworks accident was overwhelmingly scary to me. I overcame my fear because I wanted to see what happened to the kid, but so many things scared me--not only the description of having the firework thrown at him and then having bandages taken off only to find he wasn't able to see, but to imagine the way the kid who did it to him felt.
It looked up afte...more
It looked up afte...more
This books was first published in the 50's. I read it as a child and loved it. I was curious as to how I would like it now. I found the time era charming. I liked words like keen and swell. I liked the descriptions of braille and other training. There was some silliness which underestimated the eleven year old boy when he first became blind. Most people can dress in the dark by then. Overall, it was a simple, but interesting read.
This book had such an impact on me when I read it in elementary school,
that I'm adding it to my list now.
It's a book I've never forgotten.
Because of it, I tried to learn to read braille.
I visited a large school for the blind, with thoughts of working there.
It also lead me to several books about Helen Keller and her teacher,
Annie Sullivan. And, it led me to explore the work of guide dogs.
that I'm adding it to my list now.
It's a book I've never forgotten.
Because of it, I tried to learn to read braille.
I visited a large school for the blind, with thoughts of working there.
It also lead me to several books about Helen Keller and her teacher,
Annie Sullivan. And, it led me to explore the work of guide dogs.
I remember reading this book several times in elementary school because I liked it so much. I picked it up again to read to my kids for our family book. It's a very sweet, inspiring story of Jimmy's journey to find a new way to live after he is blinded in a firecracker accident. Full of life lessons evey kid should learn. Forgiveness, determination, friendship, and never giving up. A great read for any boy or girl, young or old.
This book is about a boy who gets blind by playing with fire crackers. After he was blinded he must have something to help him walk so he got a dog to guide him around. The more and more time he spends with his dog, Leader they become the best of friends. If you want to find out more then check out this book! I think it was so touching, so I hope you decide to read it.
The kids liked this one a lot, which bumps up my rating. I was bored with it, but, it is kid lit, so I guess that is okay.
What I liked is that this book contained smaller conflicts which were usually resolved within the same chapter, rather than one, large conflict that takes up most of the book. This was good for my younger children who don't do well emotionally with long, drawn-out periods of suspense.
I liked the message of forgiveness in this book as well as the introduction it gives to how...more
What I liked is that this book contained smaller conflicts which were usually resolved within the same chapter, rather than one, large conflict that takes up most of the book. This was good for my younger children who don't do well emotionally with long, drawn-out periods of suspense.
I liked the message of forgiveness in this book as well as the introduction it gives to how...more
When i was a 5th grader in elementary school, we were bussed to a bad neighborhood for racial integration, the library was my escape back in those days and this was another "dog" book I had having almost no friends in this school, books were my escape and I loved the concept of the loyalty of dogs and this book brought a tear to my eye.
Follow My Leader is a book about a young boy going through the hardships of being blinded by a firecracker. He has to struggle through his own emotion while also struggling to learn the new things that come with being blind. This book is a wonderfully written story that you can easily fall in love with. I recommend to anyone.
I loved the courage of such a child who lost his fears in prospering in life though of his new disability of blindness. He didn't excuse himself to do normal things a boy would do like be apart of the Boy Scouts. Also, Leader's knowledge and love was very admirable and helped little Jimmy lunge ahead in his new life with a new set of eyes.
As a kid I blindfolded myself for a year after reading this book. Needless to say it had an effect on me.
I've now written the draft of a young adult book called Blindfold about a teenage girl who blindfolds herself. It all hearkens back to the power of this one book.
I've now written the draft of a young adult book called Blindfold about a teenage girl who blindfolds herself. It all hearkens back to the power of this one book.
A youth book about a young boy who is blinded by a firecracker, and the seeing-eye dog program. I thought it a good mix of story and explanation. A bit about forgiveness as well. Old enough to be written in a different style than it would be written today, but enjoyable.
At times, we seemed to get bogged down in the details of learning to live with blindness. Although, I suppose a bit of that would be necessary to give you a good feel for what people who lose their sight are dealing with. Overall, though, a very enjoyable book.
I loved this book as a kid and read it over and over. I'm not sure why I wanted to revisit it but it's still a good read. It's a bit dated in language but the core story of learning to live with blindness and the value of good friends and forgiveness still stand.
It is a wonderful, excellent story about coming to terms with a huge change in life and working through it to find joy in life again. It also presented a lot about blindness in a normalizing rather than sentimental or patronizing way. I can't recommend this enough.
Every kid I know that has read this book has loved it. Every adult that has read it with their kids loved it too. There is so much good in this book, overcoming a disability and forgiveness are the main themes. I've read it with both of my boys.
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