Jim Kjelgaard Books in Order

John Belden wants to become a forest ranger, and a one-year post in the Rasca district gives him his chance. Fires, poachers, wildlife trouble, and hard weather teach him the job fast.

Kinross McKenzie, a frontier riflemaker’s son, sets out during the American Revolution to recover the rifle taken from him. His search carries him into wilderness fighting and the road to King’s Mountain.

Danny Pickett knows at once that Red, a champion Irish setter, is the dog he wants beside him. In the Wintapi wilderness, boy and dog face their greatest test against Old Majesty, a savage bear.

This linked collection follows the westward movement of North America through hunters, trappers, traders, scouts, and frontier travelers. The stories blend adventure with the hard practical work of opening trails.

Born in the wilderness and orphaned by a black wolf, a young dog learns to live alone in snow country. His path back toward humans is hard, wary, and full of danger.

Tom Rainse returns to his mountains and becomes a game warden with a half-bloodhound named Smoky. A poaching ring led by the mysterious Black Elk turns his homecoming into a dangerous mystery.

Kalak, a polar bear thought bewitched by local hunters, is really a mother fighting to feed her cubs. In the Arctic, every creature survives by strength, cunning, or luck.

When disaster strikes his beaver colony, old Chip leads the search for a new home. The pond he builds becomes a refuge, a battleground, and a meeting place between wild animals and humans.

A trapper and his dog push into the Caribou Mountains after a plane goes down with a naturalist and pilot aboard. Rescue depends on wilderness sense, endurance, and trust between man and dog.

Hawk, a prehistoric spear-maker, is abandoned after challenging tribal law with new ideas. Alone among mammoths, predators, and hunger, he must turn invention into survival.

Mike, son of Big Red, is dismissed as a runt and troublemaker. Danny and Ross see more in him, and the stubborn young setter must prove heart and hunting sense matter as much as polish.

This historical account introduces young readers to Father Jacques Marquette and his travels with Louis Joliet. The focus is exploration, river travel, and the risks of entering unknown country.

Game warden Tom Rainse returns with his hound Smoky and pinto Pete in a new fight against poachers and timber schemers. A proposed park depends on sharp tracking and steady nerves.

Sean, handsome son of Big Red, is a champion dog with a hunter’s heart. Lost in the wilderness and branded an outlaw, he must survive while a boy tries desperately to bring him home.

This young readers’ history follows the Mormon migration from Illinois toward the Salt Lake Valley. Kjelgaard turns a two-thousand-mile journey into a story of faith, hardship, and determined community.

Ramsay Cartou is drawn into a Lake Michigan adventure involving wrecks, hard work, and the great white sturgeon. The story mixes fishing, risk, and the pull of a legendary catch.

Architecture student Bill Rawls inherits a general store in the village of Elk Shanty and finds himself pulled into local problems. Running the store means learning people as carefully as any blueprint.

Star, a six-toed fox, becomes a legend among hunters because he can outwit men and hounds alike. The chase is tense, but the real thrill is watching a wild mind stay free.

A deadly mountain lion challenges seasoned hunters, a boy eager to learn, and a pack of hounds. The chase becomes a test of nerve, tracking skill, and the bond between hunter and dog.

Joe Tower dreams of escaping debt and worn-out land by taking his family west. The Oregon trail offers hope, but it also asks for sacrifice, endurance, and faith in one another.

Tawny escapes a cruel master and is forced to survive in the Arizona desert. Heat, thirst, rattlesnakes, and coyotes test a dog bred for speed in a land that forgives nothing.

Young peddler Jeff Tarrant takes up with Pal, a stray dog still grieving his lost master. Together they travel through rural trouble, danger, and loneliness, each finding a partner he badly needs.

Ted Harkness loves the Mahela woods, his collie Tammie, and the deer that roam Hawkbill Mountain. When pressure builds to hunt illegally, Ted must choose between easy money and his own code.

Frosty, a black kitten stolen from home, escapes into the Louisiana swamp and has to live by instinct. Owls, coyotes, water, and hunger teach him what freedom really costs.

Alec Simpson and his twin sisters join the rush for land in Oklahoma in 1889. The race promises a new start, but danger, rivalry, and uncertainty ride beside every wagon.

Jase Mason heads into the wilderness with his Airedale Buckles and a camera, hoping to become a wildlife photographer. A poacher called the Cat Bird and a renegade bear turn the trip dangerous.

Jonathan, an Apache boy raised for years at a mission school, returns to his people hoping to help them. Instead he is drawn into raiders, soldiers, and hard choices about identity and loyalty.

Franz Halle struggles with schoolwork but knows the mountains, and his mastiff Caesar knows him. At the St. Bernard Pass hospice, boy and dog get the chance to prove their worth in snow and danger.

Bud Sloan arrives at the Bennett farm after life in an orphanage, wary of kindness and unsure of his place. A rare black fawn gives him a secret connection to the woods and to hope.

Retired judge Colin Campbell hopes for peace on his land, but the Civil War pulls his family and neighbors into danger. The novel follows duty, home, and sacrifice as history reaches their doorstep.

Written for young readers, this novel-like biography follows Geronimo from bold Apache youth to resistance leader. Kjelgaard focuses on courage, conflict, and the pressures that shaped a contested life.

This historical adventure follows Ali, later known as Hi Jolly, from desert camel driver to the American Southwest. His bond with camels carries him through danger, hardship, and a strange new country.

Allan Marley rescues a retriever from the ice and names him Stormy. Their bond grows through cold weather, wild geese, and the difficult work of turning a brave dog into a trusted companion.

Balulu, an Aboriginal youth, and his wild dog search for food as drought grips their people’s land. The journey pits them against hunger, hostile country, and the demands of becoming a hunter.

Harky Mundee loves coon hunting, but his hound’s unusual pup, Duckfoot, is unlike any dog in the Creeping Hills. Webbed feet and stubborn courage may be exactly what the boy needs.

Bumbling Ulysses becomes winter caretaker of an isolated hunting lodge and slowly gathers an unlikely wild family. Injured, lost, and quarrelsome animals turn the woods into his own rough-edged zoo.

Pepe, a young Mexican goatherd, faces village fear, family pressure, and a killer jaguar that has already taken his father. Protecting his herd means finding courage no one else can lend him.

This collection invites readers into the forest through short animal stories shaped by close observation. Kjelgaard follows wild creatures on their own terms, with danger, beauty, and survival always nearby.

Wildlife photographer Jase Mason and his Airedale follow a migrating elk herd in Whitestone National Park. When hundreds of elk vanish, Jase’s documentary trip becomes a dangerous conservation mystery.

This collection brings together three animal stories about a feared dog, an abandoned dog, and an untamed black horse. Each tale turns on mistrust, patience, and the fragile chance of friendship.

Young trapper Pete Gant meets his match in a huge bull moose that drives him up a tree. His courage is tested again when he becomes involved with Hailey Zulski and her family’s rugged sheep ranch.

Dave Keller works at a filling station, but his real dream is to become a game warden like his father. With Mulligan at his side, he edges toward the demanding outdoor life he wants most.

Two desert coyotes struggle to raise a family while Papago Joe tries to earn his own way. When a prison guard decides Joe has found gold, survival becomes a test of wit on both human and animal trails.

This dog-story collection gathers Kjelgaard’s clear-eyed tales of loyalty, instinct, and outdoor danger. It is a good sampler for readers who want brave dogs, rough country, and human bonds earned over time.

A determined cowhand sets out to capture and understand a wild black stallion that refuses every human claim. The story turns on patience, injury, pride, and the hard work of earning an animal’s trust.

Hawk is cast out after creating a dangerous new hunting tool, the bow and arrow. With famine pressing his tribe and prehistoric predators everywhere, he must survive long enough to prove change can save lives.