Shiloh Blog

Why did you pick shiloh?

comment:

My question is why did you write about the dog you found like was it on your mind for a while so you had to write about it or what?

Phyllis replied:

That’s exactly it.  I worried so much about the frightened, trembling little dog that I just had to write her story as I guessed it to be

 

Reminds me of my own dog

Comment:

Shilo connects with my life because I know how it feels to lose a dog. In your book, and I had a dog that was getting abused before we adopted it. When we rescued the dog, it was in really bad condition similar to the guy in your book that shots the dog. I felt the same way that I felt when I read your book. When I helped my dog named Daisy, I thought of Shiloh because Daisy was usually used for wars and hunting. The hunting reminded me of Shiloh because when Daisy was a puppy, she liked to hunt baby rabbits.
What made you want to write this book? I am glad you wrote this book because it made me have really good memories of my dog. Even though your book was sad, I enjoyed it and it helped me care for my dog more. I like sad books sometimes because they bring back sad memories and make them good memories.
The family in your book was poor and that felt like my old life when I used to live in Arizona and then we moved to Washington when I was one. The family helped each other in hard times just like my family. For example, once my brother fell and was bleeding and my dog licked the blood away and scratched at the door to get my mom’s attention. Then, we all ran out and put a bandaid on the cut. The dog helped my brother get help.
The old man in your book ends up in jail for abusing dogs and doing illegal things to dogs. This impacted me because it reminded me of the man who abused Daisy before we rescued her. That man also went to jail for his crimes. I felt happy that he went away, and we were able to keep the dog. Now Daisy has had heart surgery because she had heartworm, but then we were able to give her away to someone special who has more space for her to run. Sadly, I don’t get to see her anymore, but I know she is okay in that new home. I feel happy that she is cared for and loved. I would do anything for my doggy.
I enjoyed Shiloh so much I might even read it again when I am fifteen, and I will always think of your book as I care for dogs.

Phyllis replied:

Actually, Judd Travers doesn’t end up in jail in my book, but I can understand how you might have wished him to be there.  I believe you would enjoy the three books that follow this one–Shiloh Season, Saving Shiloh, and A Shiloh Christmas.  You will see how Judd changes and how his relationship with Marty turns out.  I can tell you really loved your dog, Daisy.  Thank you for writing to me.

Shiloh

Dear Phyllis,
I loved the book Shiloh. I thought it was really suspenseful and exciting! I really liked the part where Ma agreed to keep Shiloh a secret until the next day. I thought it was really cool how expecting, tense and full of suspense the end of chapter 8 is. I was expecting Ma to get mad and bring Shiloh back to Judd Travers. But she didn’t!
A really exciting part is when Shiloh gets hurt. Dad found out! So did Dara Lynn and Becky. I was sure Dad was going to to take Shiloh back to Judd Travers. What made you decide for both parents to keep a secret? I was super surprised.
My favorite page in the whole book is page 144. I think it is super interesting how Judd gives Marty a dog collar for Shiloh (144). I think Judd is getting nicer. I also love how they are playing with Shiloh in the yard in the end. It makes it clear that Shiloh is officially part of the family(144).
I thought it was mysterious how Judd asked Marty if he wanted a ride on page 63. He might have hurt Marty or not taken him to David Howard’s. Maybe he would keep him in his truck until he found out where Shiloh was.
Marty was brave to stand up to Judd when he killed the deer. He had a gun in his hands and was a grown man. I think he had Judd in a really good position. Judd could either go to jail or he could give Marty Shiloh. I thought Marty might tell about the deer to his parents but he kept his part of the deal.
I also thought he would get caught building a pen and feeding Shiloh much sooner. I thought your book was awesome! How did you decide to write about a mistreated dog?

Phyllis replied:

I’m glad there were surprises for you in the book.  If everything had turned out just as you thought, it wouldn’t be so suspenseful, right?   I wrote about a mistreated dog because I found such a dog in Shiloh, West Virginia, which was later adopted by friends of ours who lived there.

about the book shiloh

Comment:

In the first book how come Judd Travers doesn’t become nice?

Phyllis replied:

Then there wouldn’t have been the three more Shiloh books that followed.  And he did do one thing nice at the very end of the first book, didn’t he?

 

Letter of Admiration

Comment:

I remember I started to read your book, Shiloh, on my first cruise ever. I was so excited, and I wanted to finish the book that day. Shiloh had a big impact on my life. I now understand that I must be more kind to animals because some of them have had rough past, or some of them may be having a rough time right now. For example, they might of been kicked like Shiloh was in the beginning of the book. Your book has also changed my view on people. I know now they can be mean because they are lonely, like Judd, or have something rough going on in their own lives. After reading your book, I made some changes in my life. I began to donate old blankets and pillows to animal shelters, so animals could be warm and be happy. In addition, while I already was a vegetarian, but I began to take it more seriously.
Reading your book also helped me understand people more. I had not considered the psychological perspective of human behavior. I began to think about why people do what they do and what motivates their actions. Judd was lonely because he did not have any family. Sadly, he Judd kicked Shiloh because of that terrible feeling he had inside. Marty, the main character, had a happy family. This helped him to know how to love and as a result, be kind to Shiloh and Marty.
I can relate what I learned about Judd’s poor choices to the unkind choices bullies make. I think we should be more friendly to each other because we never know what a person is going through. Bullies often target another child because they have a sadness or an anger in their life. Judd is a bully to Shiloh and sometimes Marty. Although he is kind on the inside, his loneliness stops him from being kind on the outside. I know Judd has kindness inside of him because he slowly gives more and more thoughtfulness to what Marty needs. This is what all people need: more kindness inside them. Hopefully, this will encourage them to stop being afraid and to be nice to others again.

 

Phyllis replied:

There is a lot of wisdom in your letter.  I try to remember this myself when someone is rude to me or impatient or simply mean.  I wonder what could be going on in that person’s life that makes him take outh is anger and disappointment on other people.  It is marvelous that you are making changes in your own life because of your love and empathy for animals.  Thank you so much for writing to me.

shiloh question

comment:

why do you like your book?

p.s the one thing that bothered me in this book is the grammar

 

Phyllis replied:

Um…..because I wrote it?   Because the subject interested me?  Why did you like it?  I understand that you were troubled by the grammar, but it’s simply the way I pictured this family might talk.  David Howard’s family was very different in the way they spoke.  But this helps to give both families character.

 

How long did you think about writing Shiloh?

Comment:

Hi my name is Alex I am in 5th Grade and I want to know how long and what made you think about writing about the dog I need to know because we are reading Shilo and that is my question.

 

Phyllis replied:

After I came across a dog like that in a visit to West Virginia, I was so worried about her (it was female) that by the time we drove back to Maryland, I knew I had to write a book about an abused dog.  I put all my other projects aside and wrote the first draft of the book in six weeks.  Then, of course, I did much more editing and polishing before I sent it to my editor.  The happy news is that our friends in West Virginia finally adopted that dog and named her Clover.

 

What If?

Comment:

My students thoroughly enjoyed reading Shiloh. It was an anonymous vote to continue in the series with the next book reading Shiloh Season!

In Shiloh Season, Judd survives the crash. We wonder how you would have ended the story if Judd did not survive the crash. How would Judd receive the love, forgiveness, and mercy that was shown to him from Shiloh and Marty.

There are many potential authors in my classes. They have very much appreciated your talent in being an author.

Phyllis replied:

That would be your students’ problem to figure out- -it wasn’t my choice, so I don’t have to spend time worrying about it.  I do suggest that they read at least the 3rd book in the series, which answers many questions.  And the 4th book brings things around full circle between Marty and Judd.

Shiloh Taken vs. Threatened by Judd

Comment:

Since my class had read Shiloh last school year, it was welcomed by all to continue reading Shiloh Season in the First Quarter.

We have a question for you as the Shiloh author. Why did you choose not to have Shiloh taken away by Judd for a conversion of his heart vs. constantly threatening that he would do so to Marty?

We have many potential authors in this class that are carefully watching your writing techniques.

We appreciate your time in answering our question, so we may become better writers like you.

Phyllis replied:

I really hadn’t planned to write a sequel to “Shiloh,” much less three more books in the series.  (No, there will be no more after “A Shiloh Christmas.”)  But so many students wrote to me absolutely hating Judd, and wanting something awful to happen to him.  I decided that I wanted to go into his background more, to explain why he is such a mean and miserable person.  If I had Judd take Shiloh away from Marty, then we’d be right back where we started, wouldn’t we?  With Marty trying to figure out how to persuade Judd to let him buy Shiloh.  But after the second book came out, I realized that readers would still worry that Judd would change his mind, and that there was only one thing Judd could do to persuade Marty that he would never hurt Shiloh…. (Read the 3rd book)

shiloh

Comment:

ive been reading your book shiloh in school havent read the full book but i do not like judd travers marty and shiloh i love had fun writing to you and hope you read.

 

Phyllis replied:

I hope you enjoy all four of the Shiloh books.