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RUSTY
Paperback
Published January 1, 1969
39 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 3, 2023
Be forewarned: the book has a tragic ending.
June 30, 2017
A heart tearing book that evokes many feelings. A must read
March 18, 2018
This wasn't about a deer at all. All the characters were very annoying! just get on with it. She'd of done better to move to a small town with a bit more going on.
November 10, 2024
Rusty offers an engaging blend of naturalist storytelling and creative scenarios, making it a unique entry in the genre of animal-centered fiction. While many stories about wild animals raised by humans fall into predictable patterns, Rusty keeps readers on their toes by avoiding tired tropes and presenting fresh, unexpected situations.
One of Rusty's standout qualities is Stranger's commitment to non-anthropomorphized realism, while still placing Rusty, the young deer, in situations that feel dynamic and interesting. Many animal stories tend to fall into repetitive cycles of “fight-mate-feed,” where the animals encounter similar challenges again and again. Stranger avoids this pitfall by ensuring Rusty's experiences are varied, maintaining a sense of excitement throughout much of the book.
In addition, Stranger sidesteps a common narrative issue in stories about hand-reared animals: the inevitability of either a bittersweet release back into the wild or the animal becoming too friendly and meeting a tragic end. By acknowledging these typical outcomes early on, Stranger primes readers for a less predictable story, which encourages curiosity about Rusty's fate. From the beginning, Rusty's rejection by other deer coupled with his growing aggression towards humans created suspense, as it wasn’t clear whether he could find his place in either world. This tension gives Rusty’s impending maturity the feeling of a “ticking timebomb,” making for compelling reading.
A pivotal turning point occurs when another orphaned fawn, a demure female, is introduced. Rusty's growing aggression towards his former animal friends (like Fly the dog and Fleck the sheep) is fueled by his possessiveness over his human caretaker, Joanne. Since Rusty doesn’t relate to other deer, he seems to view her as his mate, introducing a complex layer to his behavior and intensifying the story’s tension. This possessiveness hinted at an interesting conflict that could play out as Rusty continued to mature.
However, this carefully built tension dissipates when Rusty is abruptly gelded, defusing the story’s “ticking timebomb” and eliminating much of the suspense surrounding his character. After this point, Rusty becomes a docile, sexless pet, even beginning to treat the new fawn as a mother hind might. While this transformation may be realistic, it robs the story of its tension and results in a lackluster conclusion to what had previously been a compelling character arc.
The book redeems itself somewhat with an unexpected twist near the end. While I found that the narrative lost some momentum after Rusty's gelding, the novel’s unique approach and unpredictable story elements make it a worthwhile read for fans of naturalist fiction. Ultimately, Rusty is a rewarding book that stands out in its genre, though it might have benefited from a more satisfying climax that played out the suspenseful premise to its full potential.
One of Rusty's standout qualities is Stranger's commitment to non-anthropomorphized realism, while still placing Rusty, the young deer, in situations that feel dynamic and interesting. Many animal stories tend to fall into repetitive cycles of “fight-mate-feed,” where the animals encounter similar challenges again and again. Stranger avoids this pitfall by ensuring Rusty's experiences are varied, maintaining a sense of excitement throughout much of the book.
In addition, Stranger sidesteps a common narrative issue in stories about hand-reared animals: the inevitability of either a bittersweet release back into the wild or the animal becoming too friendly and meeting a tragic end. By acknowledging these typical outcomes early on, Stranger primes readers for a less predictable story, which encourages curiosity about Rusty's fate. From the beginning, Rusty's rejection by other deer coupled with his growing aggression towards humans created suspense, as it wasn’t clear whether he could find his place in either world. This tension gives Rusty’s impending maturity the feeling of a “ticking timebomb,” making for compelling reading.
A pivotal turning point occurs when another orphaned fawn, a demure female, is introduced. Rusty's growing aggression towards his former animal friends (like Fly the dog and Fleck the sheep) is fueled by his possessiveness over his human caretaker, Joanne. Since Rusty doesn’t relate to other deer, he seems to view her as his mate, introducing a complex layer to his behavior and intensifying the story’s tension. This possessiveness hinted at an interesting conflict that could play out as Rusty continued to mature.
However, this carefully built tension dissipates when Rusty is abruptly gelded, defusing the story’s “ticking timebomb” and eliminating much of the suspense surrounding his character. After this point, Rusty becomes a docile, sexless pet, even beginning to treat the new fawn as a mother hind might. While this transformation may be realistic, it robs the story of its tension and results in a lackluster conclusion to what had previously been a compelling character arc.
The book redeems itself somewhat with an unexpected twist near the end. While I found that the narrative lost some momentum after Rusty's gelding, the novel’s unique approach and unpredictable story elements make it a worthwhile read for fans of naturalist fiction. Ultimately, Rusty is a rewarding book that stands out in its genre, though it might have benefited from a more satisfying climax that played out the suspenseful premise to its full potential.
November 7, 2014
Not one of her strongest, but still very evocative.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews