Our Very Own Dog by Amanda McCardie (review)

When the narrator was four, her family got Sophie the dog from an animal shelter, and that’s how the girl learned about dogs. In a format familiar from natural history books such as Nicola Davies’ Just Ducks (BCCB 4/12), the main text describes our heroine’s adventures with Sophie (“Sophie could move quickly when she wanted to, as we found out when she first smelled sausages”) while smaller-font text gives information about dogs and good dog ownership (“A dog’s sense of smell is one to ten thousand times more sensitive than a person’s”). While the dog-show ending is forced and unnecessary, the rest of the book provides an effective blend of you-are-there pet companionship and informative details about man’s best friend. Rubbino’s speedy and informal watercolors move smoothly from focused vignettes to wide-open park spaces, and spotted Sophie beams with scruffy cheer. Wannabe pet owners will particularly appreciate the vicarious experience, and it will be a good step up to Calmenson’s May I Pet Your Dog? (BCCB 6/07).