A Dog's Way Home

Gr 4—8—On their way home from an agility championship competition that Abby's Shetland sheepdog won, Abby and her mother are in an accident. Tam is thrown, cage and all, from the car into the river. The sixth grader and her mom are both in need of emergency medical help. No one is able to return to look for Tam until days later when there is no sign of him. In alternating chapters, Tam and Abby tell their stories. The dog's is one of harrowing hardship and dangerous circumstances, reminiscent of Sheila Burnford's The Incredible Journey (Little, Brown, 1961) as he attempts to travel hundreds of miles home to "his girl." Abby is experiencing the stress of moving and fitting in at a new school because of her dad's job, but her thoughts never stray from her beloved dog. Though months go by, Abby never gives up hope that somehow Tam will be found. This is encouraged by her grandmother, who has psychic visions of Tam trying to come home. Other mystical elements play well, such as a coyote that befriends the dog and later returns as an apparition to lead him along the correct route. There is a guardian crow, too, that protects Tam and is key in the story's finale. The alternating, brief chapters effectively help set the fast pace of the story. Though there may be too many near-death experiences for Tam, creating frustration rather than adding tension to the plot, the subject matter and page-turning intensity will hook animal lovers, including reluctant readers.—Tina Martin, Arlington Heights Memorial Library, IL