A Dog's Life by Ann M. Martin

A Dog's Life: Autobiography of a Stray written by Ann M. Martin (Published 2005). 182 pages. L870. RL 4.9 Int Lvl. 3-6. A stray dog tells her life story detailing her beginning in a shed with her protective mom and her sibling, recounting her times learning about nature, danger, and safety on her own, and remembering the friendships full of trust and hope along the way. 

Booklist (December 1, 2005 (Vol. 102, No. 7))

Gr. 4-6. Novels for children rarely follow characters from birth to the threshold of the grave, but then again, most protagonists do not measure their life spans in dog years. In this "autobiography"of a dog named Squirrel, Newbery Honor Book author Martin imagines how a stray separated from its family in puppyhood finds its way in the world. Martin adjusts to her character's limited viewpoint by combining a retrospective structure--allowing an older, wiser Squirrel to shed light on things not within a puppy's purview--with graceful dog's-eye descriptions of nature, as when a moon waxes "from the tiny curl of a cat's claw to a half-closed eye."Less effective are the repetitive plot structure and the concluding focus on Squirrel's twilight years, lending the novel an elegiac tone that may not resonate with its target audience. Readers who love animal survival stories in the tradition of Anna Sewell's Black Beauty (1877) and Sheila Burnford's The Incredible Journey (1961) will embrace this for its convincing animal perspective, though some sad events may shock the softer hearted.

This book is one of my all-time favorites. It mesmerizes my students from the very first page, and has them clapping and cheering for the dog named Squirrel throughout the whole story. They hold their breath as they listen to the dangerous, heroic, and even sometimes abusive stories this dog tells. It is hard for me to keep a dry eye as I narrate this amazing book. Kids cry right along with me as they empathize and think of their own pets in their lives. This is my "go-to" book to pull my students in for a wonderful story.

~Posted by Liz Stafford