The Adventures of Old Man Coyote

Thornton W. Burgess originally wrote the chapters that would become "The Adventures of Old Man Coyote" for newspaper serialization. They appeared in newspapers June 10th through July 9th, 1913. There were 26 daily installments, Sundays excluded. When they were published as a book over three years later, in September 1916, three chapters were removed, probably due to space constraints. This edition is the first time those deleted chapters have been in front of readers since Americans opened their newspapers in the summer of 1913. The 3 deleted chapters follow the animals’ increasing fear about the mysterious noises, Prickly Porky as he works himself into a fury over an insult, and Granny Fox as she realizes with growing anxiety that she is no longer the slyest predator around.

"Away ran Granny Fox, and after her ran Bowser the Hound, and all the little meadow and forest people heard his great voice and were glad that he was not after them. But Granny Fox was not worried. You see, she had fooled him so many times that she knew she could do it again. So she kept just a little way ahead of him and gradually led him toward the place where Old Man Coyote took his sun nap every day."

Thornton W. Burgess was immensely popular in the 1910s and 1920s, and remained very popular for generations afterward. It isn’t just that his stories are very entertaining. Burgess was also a very knowledgeable naturalist, and almost every chapter describes real wild animal behavior. His books are as educational as they are entertaining.

But wait, there’s more. Burgess’ books also gently convey wonderful little moral and practical lessons. Children love those lessons because of the delightful way the stories are told. If you find that hard to believe, just try reading this book to a child.

Author: Thornton W. Burgess 

Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap

Released Date: 1944