Dogtown, written by Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko. Illustrated by Wallace West. Feiwel and Friends, Macmillan. Raincoast. 2024. $11.99 ages 8 and up .

 

"No one would miss me. Dogtown was a pretty
big place and I was always moving around. 
Mouse nodded. He didn't look happy about
the plan, but he agreed. 
Metal Head just sat there, watching. When 
I told him we were coming along, his tail 
began to wag, something I had not seen 
before."

This book, now conveniently published in paperback, came highly recommended by my younger granddaughter who loved it. You know kids and dogs! Chance is the narrator of this story about her life in a dog shelter named Dogtown. There are challenges to endure and frequent wishes for the home life she once had. She does her best to make life as good as it can be, always aware that any dog in the shelter can be added to The List (the next one to go as they have been there too long). 

She's a perfect guide for readers as she introduces other shelter dogs, and one tiny, friendly mouse. Chance is seen as Management's lucky charm, and given free rein to wander the facility without being placed in a cage. That allows her to leave some of her kibble for Mouse and her family, to prevent starvation. Life is acceptable. Metal Head, an e-dog, bonds with Quinn when the boy comes to Dogtown to read with the dogs there. Chance's opinion of Metal Head as heartless and unfeeling begins to change as she watches the two read together. Metal Head's desire to break out and find its way back home lead to the two (and friend Mouse) making their escape when the opportunity presents itself. 

Before they make their break, Chance shares her story of how she lost her leg, her mistreatment by a dogsitter when her family was away, and her arrival at the shelter. Turns out both are hoping for that belonging place that once had been theirs. The story turns from life in the shelter to a series of adventures as they help Metal Head attempt to return to his past life. 

Chance’s narrative offers flashbacks, vignettes about fellow shelter pets, and keen observation. There is laughter and opportunity to think seriously about some of the predicaments. Wallace West creates emotional and energetic grayscale artwork to enhance the story ... dogs for kids to fall in love with and care about. Back matter offers advice on helping out with shelter dogs. 

Coming soon is my review of a second book in the Dogtown series. Those who become big fans of the two will be happy to know there is a new one in the works for publication in September! 

 "Your heart is a muscle…It grows stronger the more you use it." 

https://youtu.be/-6RdO7TIyPY?si=AFlP6MXghFRFYazG

Moonwalking, written by Zetta Elliott and Lyn Miller-Lachmann. Farrar Straus Giroux, Macmillan. 2022. $22.99 ages 10 and up

"EXTRA CREDIT

even countries
have fathers
so why not
me?

why don't 
we study the 
nation's founding 
mothers?

they're the 
ones who hold
life inside

and make 
the world in 
the womb

plus

mothers are 
the ones 
who stay "

Pie and JJ are boys growing up in the early 1980s. Their stories are shared with honesty in this plucky, powerful verse novel.

Pie's home life is not easy. He and his little sister are in the care of their mother, who suffers with mental illness. Pie has never met his father. His sister Pilar's father Tony is out of the house due to domestic abuse toward their mother. The uncertainty that comes from not being able to count on their mother creates numerous issues for the children. A gifted student and an aspiring graffiti artist, Pie wants to know more about art and is encouraged by his teacher to attend an after-school art program being given at a local museum. 

JJ struggles in school, but finds solace in his music. He spends time learning to play guitar and write punk rock songs. His father is a Polish immigrant who has no work. He, too, is abusive. His treatment of his son makes JJ's life difficult and heartbreaking. 

As luck would have it, the two become friends. Their lives are not simple. Politics and racism are huge issues, felt by so many. Pie knows that his skin color affects how he is seen, and how his love of graffiti as his medium is not readily acceptable. JJ is quiet and one of the only white kids at their school. His father, a union supporter, deals with a different kind of discrimination, as does his sister. As Pie sees life through art, JJ sees it in music. Their friendship is not an easy one, but it grows into something special. An encounter with police shows just how hard it will be to maintain it.  

Two brilliant writers, in alternating voices, create a story of a precarious friendship that will speak to many middle graders. It requires careful thought and attention. The essence of the issues explored are not much different today than they were 40 years ago. Painful, but heartfelt, it will find many fans. Deservedly so! 

Fly, written by Alison Hughes. Kids Can Press, 2022. $21.99 ages 12 and up

 

"THE MEASURE OF A MAN

He wields his 
power
with a flick of his
shaggy brown hair,
a sly smile, 
a sarcastic comment
and his aura of 
lawless 
recklessness. 
He rides 
effortlessly 
on the strong waves
of his popularity.
There's never an empty seat 
beside him." 

Felix Landon Yarrow (aka Fly) is the first-person narrator for this powerful story. Fly has cerebral palsy. How he looks allows others to make assumptions about his mind, and about his abilities. His constant companion is his copy of Don Quixote, whose story of courage, fairness, and integrity holds him up when he has had enough of the world that surrounds him. 

This outstanding book is written in free verse that draws the reader from page to page, chapter to chapter, with a narration that is both compelling and authentic. Fly's concern for Daria (his crush) amps up when Carter shows he is taken with her. Anyone in middle or high school will know a Carter. He holds sway in hallways, classrooms, and outside of school. This Carter is a bully and a drug dealer, whose disdain for Fly, his physical disorder, and his virtual invisibility within Carter's circle makes it easy for Fly to literally be a 'fly on the wall'. No one suspects that he is learning anything from what is going on around the school. That is where they are so wrong! 

Fly is determined to protect Daria from Carter and his nefarious ways. His plan to show the world the real Carter is wily and well-planned. Felix proves to be clever and cynical, as he keeps readers aware of who he is and his ability to plan and carry out Carter's takedown. Action and emotion make Felix an empathetic character worthy of great admiration. This book reveals his 'quest/ for a noble life'.  

"and that I'm
to blame, 
I still feel a 
traitorous
rush
of exhilaration. 

Because she's 
looking right at me, 
yelling at me. 
At me. 

As though I was 
anyone, 
a regular person,
someone 
deserving of anger - 
worth a yell."