The Story of Ferdinand

Crying is appropriate.

I just a read a GR reviewer who noted how this story made her cry each time she read it as a child, decades after it was first published. (It's never been out of print.)

This is the classic tale for all who love life and embrace their individuality. Ferdinand is content with himself, his own company, and life's simple pleasures. But he was born a bull and bulls are supposed to knock each other's heads, horn one another, and, if lucky, be chosen to fight banderilleros with their barbed darts, picadors on horseback with their lances , and the ultimate slayers of bulls, the matador with his (and now also her) sword.

In spite of being every inch a robust, virile, muscular bull and of being chosen for the bullfight in show more Madrid, Ferdinand has no desire for such a "fight" and is sent back home by his enraged "opponents," still happy and still alive.

I have always associated reading Ferdinand as a kid with a velvet painting from Spain given to my paternal grandmother by one of her globe-trotting adult children. It was displayed on top a locked glass cabinet filled with all manner of exotic, often humorous curios, a sure mesmerizing attraction for the many visiting grandchildren. My recall of the matador is vague but I still clearly see the bull with ribboned darts dangling from its crest and neck complete with painted streams of blood draining down its shoulder. Among the happy kitsch, the tortured bull was an incongruent shock.

Published just at the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War and a few years before the beginning of Franco's 1939-1975 dictatorship, The Story of Ferdinand immediately attracted widely differing political interpretations.

It was banned by incensed regimes, of course.

For such an uplifting story with a happy ending, it should, indeed, make us sad. show less

One of my all-time favorites from childhood, The Story of Ferdinand was a book that I read again and again. Munro Leaf's narrative about a bull who would rather sit still and smell the flowers than fight in the bull-ring (and given the inevitable outcome, who could blame him?), has the perfect blend of gentle humor and wisdom.

Take, for instance, the author's description of Ferdinand's mother, who is described as "an understanding mother, even though she was a cow." I chuckle every time I read this line, just as I experience a thrill of fellow-feeling every time I read about Ferdinand sitting in the middle of the bullring, appreciating the smell of all the ladies' flowers.

Robert Lawson's wonderfully expressive black and white drawings show more are the perfect complement to this fable about being yourself. show less

I love this book. I loved this book when I was a tiny child and I loved it each time I reread it from nostalgia and I STILL love it decades later because it's a lovely allegory about being true to who you are, no matter what other people assume you should be from how you look on the outside. Giant fierce-looking bulls can be gentle flower lovers who refuse to fight.

Incidentally, Ferdinand's special tree that grows wine corks as fruit? TOTALLY RESPONSIBLE for generations of people being clueless about how corks are actually made. Also, adorable. Also, now I want a story about the cork harvesters having to nicely ask the bull to please let them come into his pasture to take the cork off the tree. And the bull being terribly worried about show more his tree and dubious about the whole thing. *g*

I love Ferdinand and his flowers so much. *happy sigh* show less

Ferdinand is another example of an inexplicably well loved classic.... why is this book so well loved? There's no real plot or apex... no highly entertaining illustrations.... no humor or whimsy.... no surprising conclusion....yet, it is cherished by many. Maybe it's Ferdinands sweet demeanor... maybe it's his Mother's unapologetic acceptance of her son.... maybe it's the old moral fable feeling of it all. I don't know... but, I too find Ferdinand endearing, although a bit boring.

I do, however, feel that this book is adored by parents more than the children it's written for..... my children are honestly pretty lukewarm about it. For this reason I can't give it the extremely high rating others do.

I loved this book. I really enjoyed Ferdinand as a character because he is content with doing what he likes to do. He does not try to change himself to fit in with the other bulls. I think that this gives readers a great message about how important it is to be yourself. Additionally, I really like how this book focuses on a male character who does not like to be violent or play rough. This goes against stereotypes or gender norms that are often placed on men. I love how this book challenges these ideas and sends a message to readers that you can be a man and not enjoy being violent. I also enjoyed this book because of the plot. I thought it was funny that Ferdinand sat on a bee which made him run extremely fast. I also liked that I show more wasn't sure what would happen once Ferdinand got into the bullfighting ring. show less

Young Ferdinand the bull is more enamored with leisurely sniffing flowers than competition, but when he is selected by bullfighters because of his size, he finds himself transported to an arena in Madrid. Despite expectations, Ferdinand never succumbs to violence and instead reveals his gentle nature to the world. A book for lovers, not fighters.

summary: Ferdinand the Bull is unlike all the other bulls in his family. He likes to sit under a tree and smell the flowers while the other bulls fight and stick each other with their horns. Almost on accident, Ferdinand gets chosen to go to Madrid for the bull fight and instead of fighting, he ends up admiring the flowers on the ladies' hats.
reflection: I thought this story was so sweet and really made me think about how you don't have to fit in with everyone else to be happy and content. It's something I think about often, myself, so this book was a great way to portray it for students of all ages.