The Red Pony - John Steinbeck

This is a classic John Steinbeck novella consisting of four interrelated short stories about the life of Jody Tiflin, a ten year old boy growing up on a Californian ranch. Throughout the short stories Jody learns about life, death and ultimately does much growing up and matures emotionally. The first, and probably most poignant of the four stories, is called The Gift. In this Jody receives a gift of a small red colt from his usually harsh and disciplinarian father. As Jody learns to care for the pony, under the gentle guidance of the farmhand Billy Buck, he appears to mature and does his chores as instructed. The tender story pulls at the heartstrings as Jody ...  Read the complete review