First Boy

"But it's hard to stay angry while leaning against the flank of a cow. Cooper liked milking. He liked the work of the hoses and the swish of the thick blue-white milk coming through them. Most especially, he liked tending Moon and Star, who didn't care to be milked by machine, thank you."I'm old enough to remember flying kites over expansive cow pastures on Manetto Hill Road, in Plainview, Long Island. But that, and the glass bottles of milk that were delivered to the front stoop by the milk man, were pretty much as close to cows as I came while growing up in the suburbs.I remember listening to my sister Elaine once, after she'd read and re-read MISTY OF CHINCOTEAGUE. She must have been ten at the time, hanging out on a Saturday afternoon in Peggy Dean's backyard, solemnly listing for Peggy all the animals she was going to have on the farm she'd acquire when she was grown up. I recall quite vividly overhearing that conversation, as the idea of living on a farm seemed so exotic to me at the time.It's fascinating to recall that afternoon now, having spent the latter half of my life (so far), living with a herd of dairy goats, fenced pastures, and the relatively open and rolling expanses that are so different from the confines of the fifty-by-hundred lot in Plainview and the fenced quarter-acre in Commack on which I grew up."Through Geometry he thought about filling the grain bins from the sacks he had carried in that morning. And after he got home from freshman cross, there would be the Orchard to mow. And there was still some splitting for this winter's woodpile--he was behind on that--and more hay to haul to the barn loft. And that top porch step to fix."He thought about the chores through every class and wondered how much he was missing what his grandfather used to do without saying anything about it. It worried him through World Cultures, where he found it hard to care much about Ancient Egyptian Trade Routes. And it worried him through English, where he couldn't muster up much concern for whether Beatrice served God, loved Benedick, and mended or not. But the ending of the play, when the prince was left all alone--that had something to it. He knew what that was about."Fifteen year-old Cooper Jewett is feeling very alone after his grandfather dies. It has just been the two of them living on the New Lincoln, New Hampshire dairy farm for those years after his grandmother had passed away; so different from his buddy Peter Hurd, whose family was so large "they could almost field both sides of a baseball game." He loves the farm with all his heart, and is determined to stay on it, but after the first few days alone he seems about ready to drown in a bottomless pit of daily work, despite the assistance of the neighbors: Mrs. Perley, from up the hill, and a fellow farmer, Mr. Searle."As for homework: If Mrs. Perley hadn't brought his backpack in from the front porch, he would have forgotten he'd left it there. Not that it would have made much difference. He went up to his room with it but never opened it that night. Geometry theorems went unproved, Ancient Egyptian Trade Routes went unmapped, and Benedick's blank verse went unscanned."Cooper slept without moving all night long."And when he woke up in the morning, there wasn't even a moment when he didn't remember that he had to do it ALL OVER AGAIN."Gary Schmidt captures both the natural beauty and down-to-earth reality of life on the farm in a way that I've never before had the pleasure of reading. I just love watching Cooper take one last walk through the barn before bedtime, making sure to gently pat each and every cow nose goodnight.But that is only the beginning of what Schmidt sows in FIRST BOY, a satire in which he deftly intersperses community secrets and national political intrigue with (real) traditional values and gentle, folksy humor (a la Garrison Keillor) that pokes fun at the various religious denominations and makes frequent references to well-baked pies.Especially notable amidst the craziness is the hero who emerges, Mrs. Perley, the retired teacher:" 'They'll be arranging for someone to pick you up. It's for your own good.'" 'Cooper is fine where he is,' said Mrs. Perley. "Now the sheriff came around his desk. His hands were clenching and unclenching like a gunfighter in an old Western." 'Neither of you has any idea what you're mixed up in,' he said, and it was as if his voice had become as cold as Fright. 'Not a single idea.' He looked hard at Cooper. 'Life isn't always what you expect it to be. Sometimes it can be full of surprises.'" 'I've seen surprises,' said Cooper. 'I'll make due.'"Mrs. Perley put an arm around him." 'We'll see how long that lasts.' Sheriff Gibbs turned back to Mrs. Perley. 'And maybe you'd better stay up in your own house. This isn't New Lincoln Elementary anymore.'" 'Do not begin a sentence with a conjunction, Raymond. It is grammatically improper,' said Mrs. Perley."Sheriff Gibbs went back around his desk. 'Thank you for the visit,' he said. 'I'll be sure to type up a report and get right on the case--Raging Birth Certificate Thief on the Loose.' He sat down and put his feet up on the desk again. He rubbed his chin and clasped his hands on his belly, over which there was a lot to clasp. 'New Lincoln police, always at your service,' he said."Outside the sheriff's office, Mrs. Perley stood by her Plymouth with her key in her hand. 'He certainly is a most unpleasant man--as helpful as a thunderstorm during a Sunday School picnic. What does he mean by accusing you of making up the entire story?' She spoke more and more quickly and waved the key at Cooper. 'What did he mean by that? And how did he know about the black sedan? Drat!' She punched her hand into the air. 'See how upset he has made me? I've begun a sentence with a conjunction myself. And he's made me say drat. Oh, and there I go again with another conjunction.'" 'I won't ever tell,' said Cooper." 'Thank you. And drat that man anyway.' "Having spent a quarter century milking Nubian dairy goats myself, what impressed me above all about FIRST BOY is that while there is so much going on in this zany tale, Cooper Jewett never once fails to register that it is milking time.

Cooper Jewett's grandfather and only guardian just died, leaving him to run a dairy farm in New Hampshire by himself. Cooper's parents died in a car accident when he was a baby, at least that's what he's been told. After his grandfather's death, Mrs. Perley helps out by cooking for Cooper and sleeping downstairs instead of going home to her own house at night. Mr. Searle, another dairy farmer, helps out with the chores around the farm. Cooper does the best he can to keep up with his schoolwork and with his position on the cross-country team. But black sedans are following him, and soon he finds himself in the middle of a fight between President of the United States, who's running for reelection, and Senator Wickham, the challenger.Political dirty tricks are the basis of the book. Cooper is the tool, and he spends most of his time trying to keep himself from being used.Senator Wickham is the bad guy here, and he's very bad, and very one-dimensional. The President and the people working for her are slightly more three dimensional than the people working for Senator Wickham.Mr. Searle and Mrs.Perley are both good guys, and they're very good, in spite of their gruff New England top layer. The Methodist minister and his very large family, including Cooper's friend Peter, are also very good.Senator Wickham tries one destructive act after another to try to get Cooper to cooperate with him. While the acts move the story along, they seem contrived.Cooper is the only multidimensional character. He's dealing with the loss of his grandparents, the fear of losing his farm, the work involved in maintaining the farm and going to school. Mr. Searle and Mrs. Perley love him, and this gives their characters a bit more multidimensionality.The descriptions of the farming lifestyle and Cooper's Farm in particular makes me want to live on a dairy farm in New Hampshire. I can almost feel the warmth coming from the cows as Cooper leans into them while milking them on a cold morning.Over all, this is not a masterpiece, but a fun romp into political dirty tricks.

This is a great book to teach so many different themes, primarily the importance of life-long values one must have and live by. Family, friends, honor, a good work ethic, all play into this book. I use this book with my sixth grade class to teach them the importance of these themes as well as what unscrupulous people can attempt to do and succeed at if no one is watching. I also bring in the importance of paying attention to government; after all, these 12 year olds will be voting soon (I hope)!

I liked it a lot it was a really good book and I liked the part about the bedsheet escape

This story is very well written and held my attention to the last word. Some books have good writing and a weak story; others have a good story but are not well written. Gary Schmidt scores high on both counts.

I am in the middle of reading FIRST BOY, and it is getting more interesting every night, just before I go to sleep. My wife has already read it and won't tell me how it turns out.

I thought this was a very good book and I would totaly read it again. And it was a very good book

We love Gary Schmidt books!