Cowardly Clyde
by Bill Peet (Author, Illustrator)
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For a war horse, Clyde is an abysmal coward, but he finally decides that even if he isn't brave he can at least act brave.Tags
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Clyde is the horse of a brave knight, but Clyde isn't so brave himself. When his knight goes after an ogre, Clyde has to decide between running and facing his fear to save Sir Galavant.
2023 - 1970’s Immersion Reading Challenge
Cowardly Clyde by Bill Peet (1979) 38 pages.
READING LEVEL 4.5 AR POINTS 0.5
What a great first suspenseful monster story, with a hero, for kids! Not Jack and the Beanstalk, but Clyde, the cowardly horse, and the Ogre. Not too scary…just right to keep their interest up. I loved it!
Cowardly Clyde by Bill Peet (1979) 38 pages.
READING LEVEL 4.5 AR POINTS 0.5
What a great first suspenseful monster story, with a hero, for kids! Not Jack and the Beanstalk, but Clyde, the cowardly horse, and the Ogre. Not too scary…just right to keep their interest up. I loved it!
Kirkus Reviews : "One of Peet's liveliest (if not most insidious) triumphs."
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805 works; 1 member
Author Information

Bill Peet was born William Bartlett Peed on January 29, 1915 in Grandview, Indiana. He graduated from the John Herron Art Institute in Indianapolis. In 1937, he began his artistic career at Walt Disney Studios. While there, he worked on several feature films including Fantasia, Sleeping Beauty, Song of the South, Alice in Wonderland, and Peter show more Pan. He was both an artist and the screenwriter for several films including Cinderella, 101 Dalmatians, and Sword in the Stone. While working at Disney, he also wrote his own children's books and eventually left to become a full-time writer. His first book, Hubert's Hair-Raising Adventure, was published in 1955. During his lifetime, he wrote and illustrated 35 children's books including The Pinkish, Purplish, Bluish Egg; The Whingdingdilly; Chester the Worldly Pig; and Luckiest One of All. His book, Bill Peet: An Autobiography, was named a Caldecott Honor Book in 1989. He died on May 11, 2002 at the age of 87. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Awards and Honors
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Cowardly Clyde
- Original publication date
- 1979
- People/Characters
- Clyde; Sir Galavant
- Dedication
- To Dr. Royce Simpson with appreciation for his years of patience and kindness in caring for our beloved pets
- First words
- Once there was a brave young knight known as Sir Galavant who rode around on a great war-horse shouting, "Bing on the fire-breathing dragons! Bring on the man-eating giants! Bring on the ogres and trolls! I'll clobber the ... (show all)brutes, I will!"
- Quotations
- If I'm not half brave enough, then I must pretend to be brave! I'll put on a big act!
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)But after all, a horse who bites a giant ogre on the tail and lives to trot another day is just about as brave as anyone can be.
- Canonical DDC/MDS
- 823.914
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 528
- Popularity
- 56,249
- Reviews
- 3
- Rating
- (3.94)
- Languages
- English, French
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 12
- UPCs
- 1
- ASINs
- 4




























































