Shiloh (Naylor novel)
First edition cover of Shiloh
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| Author | Phyllis Reynolds Naylor |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Children's novel |
| Publisher | Atheneum |
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Publication date
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September 30, 1991 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 144 |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 21441925 |
| LC Class | PZ7.N24 Sg 1991 |
| Followed by | Shiloh Season Saving Shiloh A Shiloh Christmas |
Shiloh is a Newbery Medal-winning children's novel by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor published in 1991. The 65th book by Naylor, it is the first in a quartet about a young boy and the title character, an abused dog. Naylor decided to write Shiloh after an emotionally taxing experience in West Virginia where she encountered an abused dog.
Narrator and protagonist Marty Preston lives in the hills of Friendly, West Virginia. After finding an abused beagle owned by his brutal neighbor Judd Travers, Marty defies his society's standards of not meddling with each other's business. Marty resolves to steal and hide the dog, naming him Shiloh and fabricating a web of lies to keep his secret. After his theft is discovered, Marty discovers Judd shooting a deer out of season and blackmails him into selling Shiloh to him. Because he lacks the money to buy Shiloh, Marty resolutely works for Judd doing numerous chores.
Primarily a Bildungsroman and adventure novel, the novel depicts the emotional tribulations and maturing of an 11-year-old boy. Some themes of the novel are ethics, consequentialism, religion and morality, and animal–human relationships. Marty learns that morality is confounding and must choose between two unpalatable choices: rescuing the abused Shiloh through stealing and lying and allowing Judd to keep abusing Shiloh.
Reviewers generally gave positive reviews of the book and were impressed by the novel's suspense and vernacular language. In addition to the Newbery Medal, Shiloh has received several state awards voted upon by children, including the Sequoyah Children's Book Award, the Mark Twain Readers Award, and the William Allen White Children's Book Award. In 1996, the book was adapted into a movie of the same name. The novel spawned three sequels, Shiloh Season, Saving Shiloh, and A Shiloh Christmas published in 1996, 1997, and 2015, respectively. Shiloh is taught in many elementary school courses in the United States.
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