SuitabookCaring for animals
Sadie finds an injured stray dog, learns that he faces a shelter deadline, and makes rescuing him her mission.
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Book details
Amber Smith - Author
This is a hopeful, character-focused story about a child navigating change while trying to help a vulnerable dog. It combines magical communication with family tensions, friendship shifts, responsibility and difficult choices.
Fans of Katherine Applegate, Holly Goldberg Sloan, and Lynda Mullaly Hunt will love New York Times bestselling author Amber Smith’s heartwarming middle grade debut about family, friendship, and the special connection between a girl and her dog. Eleven-year-old Sadie’s school year is off to an awful start. Her best (and only) friend moved away, her older brother is a jerk (as always), and her beloved Gramps is having more and more trouble keeping his memories straight. But when she comes across a stray dog, she discovers something wonderful and magical—she and the dog, Dewey, are able to communicate telepathically. Sadie knows that Dewey is destined to be her friend. Dewey is quickly captured and sent to a shelter. And Sadie’s moms say Dewey is dangerous, a bite risk, and that Sadie, whose mind is always wandering with a larger than life imagination, needs to prove she’s more responsible before she can adopt any pets. But Sadie is running out of time—Dewey lets Sadie know that her days at the shelter are numbered. The only solution: break Dewey out of doggie jail. In this reaffirming, magical, and uplifting story of friendship, family, and believing in yourself, New York Times bestselling author Amber Smith assures the reader: it’s okay to think big and act with your whole heart.
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Sign in for personalised guidanceThis is a hopeful, character-focused story about a child navigating change while trying to help a vulnerable dog. It combines magical communication with family tensions, friendship shifts, responsibility and difficult choices.
Sadie finds an injured stray dog, learns that he faces a shelter deadline, and makes rescuing him her mission.
Sadie’s friend moves away, her grandfather’s memory worsens, and he moves in with the family.
Sadie’s family asks her to prove she is more responsible before adopting a pet, while she considers breaking Dewey out of the shelter.
Give particular attention to Gramps’s worsening dementia, Sadie’s uncertainty about her IEP and processing difficulties, the friend’s move, and Dewey’s shelter situation, including the stated threat of euthanasia.
This is a grounded book brief while Suitabook strengthens the analysis: some draft conclusions still depend on unresolved evidence.
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