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Lion Hound
A big, smart, and slaughterous mountain lion is a challenge for two experienced lion hunters, a boy much interested in hunting and dogs, and a pack of hounds including an experienced leader and an excellent young hound
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First published June 1, 1960
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
June 13, 2014
I'm not going to say this is the best book ever written, but in the front of my copy is a sticker saying it was the first book I read in 1989 and rereading it now to my kids, it took me right back to a happier time when animals and mountains were all any story needed. Still love it.
Five stars.
Five stars.
March 18, 2021
This was one of the best books i'v ever read in my entire life. It is full of adventure.
February 20, 2025
Another excellent story from Kjelgaard. I had just read Snow Dog, by this author, and Decided to finish both of his books.
I forgot to mention that these books, written in the middle of the previous century, involve killing a lot of animals. I found, in the previous book, slightly disturbing to kill Lynx, because they are so beautiful and a bit more rare nowadays, but the trapper in that book prized them for their fur.
In this book, the protagonist is a high school boy, who admires his neighbor, who kills mountain lions (Otherwise known as Nitney Lions, Florida Panthers, cougars, or puma) to keep the farmers and herders safe in the Rimrock area of Arizona. The nieghbor raises traditional hound dogs who are expert at treeing or bringing a mountain lion at bay(cornered).
Re-read this book with an eye to adding it to our Little Free library at work(a Jr. high school). It is an excellent addition to the library. And yes we also have a school library, but i have found that school libraries get rid of books that are older than ten or twenty years unless they are still best sellers. SO I am promoting books in the little Free library that are my favorites that i think kids would love.
Kjelgaard does bring out the spirit of a true conservationist in all his books. Kill out of necessity, and do not wasted the meat or pelts. They don't kill young or pregnant mothers, in general. They respect their prey.
The young man in this story, wants to become a forest ranger one day and he learns about the necessity of the coexistence of different species. He found out that the bobcats need to be at a certain level in the forest, to keep certain birds under control, so they(the birds) don't eat all the moths, that are important to the blooming of a favored plant.
An exciting story that can teach young people more about life and death.
I forgot to mention that these books, written in the middle of the previous century, involve killing a lot of animals. I found, in the previous book, slightly disturbing to kill Lynx, because they are so beautiful and a bit more rare nowadays, but the trapper in that book prized them for their fur.
In this book, the protagonist is a high school boy, who admires his neighbor, who kills mountain lions (Otherwise known as Nitney Lions, Florida Panthers, cougars, or puma) to keep the farmers and herders safe in the Rimrock area of Arizona. The nieghbor raises traditional hound dogs who are expert at treeing or bringing a mountain lion at bay(cornered).
Re-read this book with an eye to adding it to our Little Free library at work(a Jr. high school). It is an excellent addition to the library. And yes we also have a school library, but i have found that school libraries get rid of books that are older than ten or twenty years unless they are still best sellers. SO I am promoting books in the little Free library that are my favorites that i think kids would love.
Kjelgaard does bring out the spirit of a true conservationist in all his books. Kill out of necessity, and do not wasted the meat or pelts. They don't kill young or pregnant mothers, in general. They respect their prey.
The young man in this story, wants to become a forest ranger one day and he learns about the necessity of the coexistence of different species. He found out that the bobcats need to be at a certain level in the forest, to keep certain birds under control, so they(the birds) don't eat all the moths, that are important to the blooming of a favored plant.
An exciting story that can teach young people more about life and death.
January 28, 2024
A wilderness adventure tale of an on-going hunt that takes place mid-century in the mountainous region of the American west.
A young mountain lion experiences cruelty at the hand of man and when he finally breaks free from his captors the now older lion turns rogue, becoming a vicious and cunning hunter, killing indiscriminately for sport, rather than just for food. Various livestock in the region becomes its favorite target. Jake Kane is one of the last professional predator hunters in the area and after the rogue beast kills Jake’s favorite hound, Sally, Jake is determined to track the lion and kill it. Helping Jake with the hunt is his remaining pack of hounds which includes two of Sally’s pups, and Jake’s young neighbor, Johnny Torrington, who developed an instant affinity to one of those pups when he first met it when it was just about two months old.
The book is filled with vivid imagery of the rustic wilderness of the American west: the flora, the fauna, the scenery, the rock formation, even the weather. This author was one of my favorite authors in my youth and only recently have I come across some of his titles that weren’t available to me when I was young. Reading this book not only took me back to my childhood, when I fondly remember eagerly losing myself in these books, but it was a brief and exciting escape to a not-too-distant past in a still remote area of our nation, that has man and his trusty, faithful canine companions working together to subdue the savagery that can arise from the surrounding wilds. Unfortunately, the excursion wasn’t a pleasant stroll through nature due to the extent of the carnage from the mountain lion. Also, since the book was published in the mid 1950’s it reflects the pervading mindset of the time and locale, where all natural predators were deemed bad and needed to be eradicated, with bounties paid for each scalp or pelt that could be produced. Although the book was written for the younger readers, with its emphasis on hunting there is quite a bit of bloodshed throughout. Young, aspiring hunters and outdoors enthusiasts would enjoy this story.
A young mountain lion experiences cruelty at the hand of man and when he finally breaks free from his captors the now older lion turns rogue, becoming a vicious and cunning hunter, killing indiscriminately for sport, rather than just for food. Various livestock in the region becomes its favorite target. Jake Kane is one of the last professional predator hunters in the area and after the rogue beast kills Jake’s favorite hound, Sally, Jake is determined to track the lion and kill it. Helping Jake with the hunt is his remaining pack of hounds which includes two of Sally’s pups, and Jake’s young neighbor, Johnny Torrington, who developed an instant affinity to one of those pups when he first met it when it was just about two months old.
The book is filled with vivid imagery of the rustic wilderness of the American west: the flora, the fauna, the scenery, the rock formation, even the weather. This author was one of my favorite authors in my youth and only recently have I come across some of his titles that weren’t available to me when I was young. Reading this book not only took me back to my childhood, when I fondly remember eagerly losing myself in these books, but it was a brief and exciting escape to a not-too-distant past in a still remote area of our nation, that has man and his trusty, faithful canine companions working together to subdue the savagery that can arise from the surrounding wilds. Unfortunately, the excursion wasn’t a pleasant stroll through nature due to the extent of the carnage from the mountain lion. Also, since the book was published in the mid 1950’s it reflects the pervading mindset of the time and locale, where all natural predators were deemed bad and needed to be eradicated, with bounties paid for each scalp or pelt that could be produced. Although the book was written for the younger readers, with its emphasis on hunting there is quite a bit of bloodshed throughout. Young, aspiring hunters and outdoors enthusiasts would enjoy this story.
February 12, 2022
Lion Hound by Jim Kjelgaard is a fantastic children's book that can be enjoyed by adults as well. The story is about a High School aged boy Johnny Torrington who lives in the red rim rock country of Arizona. He lives in a cabin with his grandfather Alice Torrington who was a former Lion Hunter. They are friends with the current Mountain Lion hunter named Jake Kane who has a pack of hunting dogs including a red color hound named Buck who is exceptional.
A Mountain Lion cub that was captured and put into captivity at a gas station as a roadside attraction after the lion's mother was killed finally escapes and being familiar with the ways of man knows better then to ever be treed. After it escapes the Mountain Lion becomes a very efficient killer of livestock and wild game. It ends up mauling a Basque sheepherder after killing a lot of sheep so a bounty is put on its head. Jake Kane goes after the Lion with his dogs but is foiled again and again because the Lion is so evasive and smart. Kane finally corners the Lion but is killed by the lion when his rifle jams.
Jake Kane's loyal hound Buck pursues the killer and young Johnny Torrington and his Grandfather take up the hunt for the climatic ending and conclusion of the book. Kjelgaard wrote a lot of dog books and one of them, BIG RED was made into a Disney movie. He is an outstanding writer who also was very apt at describing the joy of eating a good breakfast. I highly recommend all of his books.
A Mountain Lion cub that was captured and put into captivity at a gas station as a roadside attraction after the lion's mother was killed finally escapes and being familiar with the ways of man knows better then to ever be treed. After it escapes the Mountain Lion becomes a very efficient killer of livestock and wild game. It ends up mauling a Basque sheepherder after killing a lot of sheep so a bounty is put on its head. Jake Kane goes after the Lion with his dogs but is foiled again and again because the Lion is so evasive and smart. Kane finally corners the Lion but is killed by the lion when his rifle jams.
Jake Kane's loyal hound Buck pursues the killer and young Johnny Torrington and his Grandfather take up the hunt for the climatic ending and conclusion of the book. Kjelgaard wrote a lot of dog books and one of them, BIG RED was made into a Disney movie. He is an outstanding writer who also was very apt at describing the joy of eating a good breakfast. I highly recommend all of his books.
February 11, 2025
I had a set of Kjelgaard's dog books when I was young and I used to re-read those regularly. I loved the boy and his dog out surviving in the wilderness type of story. The loyal companion. The danger of the wild. This book was less about the boy than about the lion but it was still good.
July 12, 2019
Read this out loud to my kids. We all really enjoyed it! The suspense of what was going to happen kept my boys talking in between readings.
June 9, 2024
As a kid I loved all his books.
February 10, 2026
A heartfelt outdoors story, the likes of which is rare to find today.
October 24, 2018
A rogue mountain lion threatens the safety of a mountainside community in this YA novel. Young Johnny faithfully hunts with neighbor Jake Kane whenever he has the chance. He loves Jake's dogs, and he loves the thrill of the chase. The boy also loves wildlife and nature, and has a healthy respect for both. His idol has the questionable job of turning in mountain lion scalps for bounty. But when a killer lion moves into the territory and begins a senseless slaughter, the usefulness of this trade comes to light. Jake takes his hounds up into the mountain looking for the beast that is killing for fun, rather than for food, taking his own life into his hands. This story is as much about Jake's hounds as anything, and his youngest, Buck, is a special kind of dog who instantly bonds with his master. As hound and lion face off, there can be only one winner.
It is a story of survival, of coexisting with nature rather than destroying it, and, for Johnny, of growing up with a balance between the two (he wishes to become a forester). It's also a story of courage and skill, both on the side of the cunning mountain lion who has an understandable hatred of man and on the side of the hounds who must track him down. The author gives the story both human and animal perspective, as he switches between the POV of Johnny, Jake, the dogs, and the lion in telling this tale.
It is a story of survival, of coexisting with nature rather than destroying it, and, for Johnny, of growing up with a balance between the two (he wishes to become a forester). It's also a story of courage and skill, both on the side of the cunning mountain lion who has an understandable hatred of man and on the side of the hounds who must track him down. The author gives the story both human and animal perspective, as he switches between the POV of Johnny, Jake, the dogs, and the lion in telling this tale.
November 13, 2014
Lion hound is about a person that raises a bunch of hound dogs and the hound dogs job is to chase anything that is terrorizing a village or just needs to be chased off or away from a village. If you like dogs and mountain lions then this is a book for u because it has both things in it. I liked it because it had to do with mountain lions and dogs and i love mountain lions and dogs so that is why i chose this book. I rated this book five stars because it was easy going and it really interested me because i love dogs and mountain lions.
April 10, 2009
Arizona's rimrock is where two hunters and a hound confront a mountain lion with no fear of man. The cat was raised in tortuous captivity as a roadside show attraction. The cat has escaped to become a danger through its lack of fear. Jake Kane is the older hunter with the hound in the story, Buck. Jake is friends with Johnny's grandfather Allis. This sets the stage for Johnny becoming involved in the epic hunt for the hungry cat once the is enough snow to track it.
April 7, 2015
As a kid, it was fair to say I loved all things DOG. This is one of the books I've kept from when I was a child, saved for my own.
Sadly, they aren't quite as in love with these as I was, but I keep hoping ;)
Sadly, they aren't quite as in love with these as I was, but I keep hoping ;)
November 3, 2008
Jim Kjelgaard really never wrote a bad book. This is another entry in his series of young adult books about courages dogs. I enjoyed every one of them.
February 7, 2009
Fast read, fun boy-and-dog story. Interesting to get the perspective of the animals.
April 16, 2009
This was a favorite author as a teen and I sought out any book I could from him
November 9, 2014
This is not the type of book I would typically read. It was given to me, but in it's own respect it was well-written and interesting to read.
August 28, 2023
My favorite part is when the kid went to find the mountain lion that killed his friend.
10/10
I liked this book because it was action packed and about things that I enjoy.
10/10
I liked this book because it was action packed and about things that I enjoy.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews