16 May 2011 2 Comments

Dog Books: The 10 Best in Canine Literature for ages 8 and up

We love man’s best friend and apparently we love to read about them too. I need to do a whole other list of fantastic dog picture books. But for now, here’s a list of my 10 favorite books about dogs.

1. Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo. Through the love she gains from her new pet, a girl gains the courage to ask her father about the mother who abandoned them. “In this exquisitely crafted first novel [a Newbery Honor book], each chapter possesses an arc of its own and reads almost like a short story in its completeness,” said PW in our Best Books of 2000 citation.

2. Call of the Wild by Jack London. First published in 1903, The Call of the Wild is regarded as Jack London’s masterpiece. Based on London’s experiences as a gold prospector in the Canadian wilderness and his ideas about nature and the struggle for existence, The Call of the Wild is a tale about unbreakable spirit and the fight for survival in the frozen Alaskan Klondike.

3. A Dog’s Life: Autobiography of a Dog by Ann M. Martin. Squirrel and her brother Bone begin their lives in a toolshed behind someone’s summer house. Their mother nurtures them and teaches them the many skills they will need to survive as stray dogs. But when their mother is taken from them suddenly and too soon, the puppies are forced to make their own way in the world, facing humans both gentle and brutal, busy highways, other animals, and the changing seasons. When Bone and Squirrel become separated, Squirrel must fend for herself, and in the process makes two friends who in very different ways define her fate.

4. Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. When Marty Preston comes across a young beagle in the hills behind his home, it’s love at first sight — and also big trouble. It turns out the dog, which Marty names Shiloh, belongs to Judd Travers, who drinks too much and has a gun — and abuses his dogs. So when Shiloh runs away from Judd to Marty, Marty just has to hide him and protect him from Judd. But Marty’s secret becomes too big for him to keep to himself, and it exposes his entire family to Judd’s anger. How far will Marty have to go to make Shiloh his?

5. Lad: A Dog. Lad, a courageous and dignified 80-pound collie, lived in The Place. The Place was thick with woods, abounding with squirrels to chase, and a cool lake in which to plunge — a beautiful kingdom — and Lad was its undisputed king. Lad’s loyalty to his chosen Master and Mistress knew no bounds. The stories in this book are all about Lad. Some will make you laugh out loud, some will make you cry. And when the book comes to its conclusion, you will know one thing for sure — that Lad was a dog with a soul . . .

6. Dog of Flanders by Louise de la Ramée. Thanks to the support of a loving dog that he helps nurse back to health, an aspiring young artist never gives up hope, despite being subjected to all sorts of terrible hardships.

7. Ribsy by Beverly Cleary. Henry Huggins’s dog, Ribsy, is hopelessly lost in a huge shopping mall parking lot. It’s raining hard, the pavement is slick, horns are honking, and drivers are shouting. When Ribsy thinks he has found the Hugginses’ new station wagon at last, he jumps in the open tailgate window and falls asleep, exhausted. When he wakes up find himself in the wrong car, lots of little girls pet him and make plans to give him a bath. All Ribsy wants to do is go home to Henry. Instead, he’s about to begin the liveliest adventure of his life.

8. Sheep by Valerie Hobbs. The sheep closed in around him like a big, woolly blanket. The puppy had never been so scared or so excited in his life. Soon he was racing, feinting, dodging—learning what it means to be one of the proud breed of Border collies, the finest sheepherders in the world. Then, almost overnight, his life is turned upside down. He finds himself in a series of strange places, with no sheep, his family gone. With nothing but the courage he was born with and a dream, he searches for the life he once knew, gathering names and adventures as he goes. For a short time, he’s called Blackie. To the Goat Man, he’s Shep. To Hollerin, he’s Spot. There’s one name that threatens to haunt him forever—Sparky, the name Billy the circus man calls him. But there’s another name that he is given, one that finally makes him feel at home. . . .

9. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. Enzo is a lab terrier mix plucked from a farm outside Seattle to ride shotgun with race car driver Denny Swift as he pursues success on the track and off. Denny meets and marries Eve, has a daughter, Zoë, and risks his savings and his life to make it on the professional racing circuit. Enzo, frustrated by his inability to speak and his lack of opposable thumbs, watches Denny’s old racing videos, coins koanlike aphorisms that apply to both driving and life, and hopes for the day when his life as a dog will be over and he can be reborn a man. When Denny hits an extended rough patch, Enzo remains his most steadfast if silent supporter. (Publisher’s Weekly)

10. Dog Heaven by Cynthia Rylant. A picture book for all ages. A comforting and smile-inducing poetic text speculates on the place where all good dogs go, describing Dog Heaven as a wonderful location filled with countless ham biscuits, good meals, lots of petting, and endless stretches of fields to run in.