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Reviewed by: Lisa Rice, Middle School Librarian Title: Dogtown Author: Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Year: 2023 Good for Grades: 3-7 Genre/Type of Book: J fiction, adventure, animals
Content Warnings, or things that other School Librarians should be aware of: an accident involving a dog Recommended for a school library: Yes Reason(s) for choosing the book: I love Katherine Applegate and, of course, dogs! It looked like a fun book based on the cover and as I flipped through it, I fell in love with the illustrations! They are so cute! There was a little hesitation as I feel like Applegate's book sometimes take a dark turn and I was worried that dogs may be involved in that. If you were tasked by the publisher with writing a short quote for the back cover of this book, what would it be: Mr. Molinari on page 301: "This is why I love teaching. You can never tell what will reach a kid. There's an element of wonder to it all, you know?" and also, from a page in Metal Head's manual: "Your heart is a muscle. It grows stronger the more you use it." (p. 300)
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Review:
Dogtown is a dog shelter. To help with adoptions, the shelter decided to house Dogtown 2.0, a place to return metal dogs, or toy robotic dogs that are no longer wanted, as a gimmick- come see the robotic dogs playing with the real dogs and adopt a dog while you are here. The idea went viral, as people loved seeing robotic dogs rough housing with the real dogs, but people started adopting the robotic dogs, not the real dogs. After all, "metal dogs are easier- no muddy paws, no sharp claws, no fleas, no ticks, no hairballs, no vet bills, no pee stains on the carpet, no smelly dog food cans, no barking, no hassles at all." (p.31) Fun fact, metal dogs come with fake fleas that you can attach with Velcro. So, eDogs, iDogs, Aibos, RoboRovers, and Pup1000s were getting adopted while real dogs sat in the shelter, wondering when their owners would come looking for them.
Chance is a three-legged mutt who, like all the shelter dogs, longs to be back with his owners. He is upfront about not wanting pity for only having three legs. He ends up befriending Metal Head, the weird robotic dog who doesn't care about interacting with people, is programmed to like cats, and has screws that look like fleas. And then there is the trilingual Mouse (a rodent who lives in the shelter and steals dog kibble to share with this family) who speaks Mouse, Human, Dog, and also sign-language. The three form an unlikely friendship and accidentally get locked out of the shelter and decide to go find their previous owners who must be desperately looking for them.
This is a wonderful book for a funny read aloud with great discussion points. I also like this book for reluctant readers as the chapters are very short, sometimes just a page, and there is a lot of white space on the pages, with a larger font. It doesn't look overwhelming, and yet is not one of those super skinny books that looks different from what everyone else is reading. The illustrations of the dogs and Mouse are so cute! I love West's work! They are simple enough that I wanted to try drawing them too and I think kids would have fun drawing their own dogs in West's style. I think this book would also make a great movie!
There are not many books about dogs with a disability. Chance shares his story about how he came to have three legs (have some tissues ready), and how he has overcome this and doesn't let it stand in his way. I loved the power of sharing your story, as Chance does when he has a heart-to-heart with Metal Head. One of the messages in this book is, "we are so much more than what's wrong with us," and some great lessons and discussions can come from this. I loved the theme of befriending people who are not like us, like a tiny rodent, a malfunctioning metal dog, and a furry three-legged dog do in this book.
Buster, who the sequel will focus on, is a secondary character in this book but provides some humorous stories. He is a Golden, so he gets adopted often, but he gets returned often so he is known as a "bounceback." He has some great stories to share when he comes back to the shelter, and I cannot wait to hear his whole life story in the sequel. The last time he was returned it was for growling at Grandma. To be fair, grandma is a 6'2" bodybuilder who wears metal-toed boots, and she was tiptoeing into the bedroom where Buster and his little human were sleeping. Buster did what came naturally, and back to the shelter he went. There are also examples of great writing to point out to students, this one using alliteration and Buster: "Buster banged, he bounced, he boomeranged back, and he barked his head off," (p. 37) describing Buster's return to the shelter.
There are many great quotes in this book worth discussing and posting around a classroom. Chance says, "I learned something important that day: never say something about a dog that you wouldn't want him to hear." (p.47). This probably applies to humans as well. "Luck is not a winning hand of cards. Luck is making a new friend." (p. 73). I would issue that challenge to my middle schoolers. Some are more comical: "I will never understand perfume. Why would you want to cover up your behind smell?" (Chance, p.178). I'm not sure I'd post that one, especially out of context. And also, by Chance, "Humans are always telling stories about dogs. Toto, the Big Red Dog, the Lady and the Tramp...you think these stories really happened?" (p.306) There is a lot to discuss with a class, whether it is a quick five minute discussion or something deeper.
I love that Applegate, through the Dogtown dogs, promotes dogs as reading buddies. Dogs love to hear books and chew books. They love to be reading buddies but in Dogtown you have to earn your spot - no dancing, prancing, howling, growling, or sleeping during story time. Also, no snoring or growling at the villains, or covering your eyes during the scary parts. I am going to incorporate some of these into my library read aloud rules.
At the end of the book is a section on "7 Things Kids Can Do to Help Shelter Dogs" and would it be a great field trip to get students active with a local shelter looking for help. It seems like it would be a win-win, especially if books could also be involved- for the reading, not the chewing. I also loved one of Applegate's acknowledgements: "But our biggest thanks go to the teachers and librarians who handled the unprecedented challenges of 2020, 2021, and 2022 with grace and dignity." (p.3440).
I loved this book and I think student will too, especially in the 4-6th grades. I hope after schools reading this book, less dogs show up in shelters and more get adopted from shelters. I am hoping a school considers using a therapy dog to read to. I hope more animals get treated with kindness. I am definitely looking forward to the sequel.
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Find resources for Dogtown at Teachingbooks.net
For more information about this book, see the Publishers Website