Wilson Rawls is the author of the timeless classic Where the Red Fern Grows and the acclaimed novel Summer of the Monkeys. He was born on a small farm in the Ozark Mountains and spent much of his boyhood roaming northeastern Oklahoma with his only companion, an old bluetick hound.
   Since its publication more than fifty years ago, Where the Red Fern Grows has assumed the status of a classic and has been made into a widely acclaimed motion picture. Rawls' second novel, Summer of the Monkeys, received rave reviews and won the prestigious California Young Reader Medal Award, among other accolades.