The Latchkey Dog

ISBN 0316059161 - Dog stories and kids' books. Can there be a better combination? I can't imagine what it might be, unless it was Christmas dog stories and kids' books. With that in mind, Latchkey Dog seemed like a no-brainer to me! Sam has a dog named Amber who loves people so much that being left home alone is too much for the pup, who barks relentlessly when she's left alone. Amber is left alone quite a bit now, because Sam's mother, who recently became a single parent when she got divorced, has to work. When their neighbor, Mrs. Watson, complains, Sam's mother decides that Amber will have to go to a new home. That's not even the end of the bad news. It's beginning to look like Amber will be going to live with Meredith Rumsey, the rottenest person in the world. Sam's got to find a way to keep Amber quiet or face losing her for good. The illustrations inside, by Cat Bowman Smith, remind me vaguely of the Dennis the Menace comic strip, although not as good. Sam's efforts, both botched and successful, to solve his problem are amusing and send a good message about persistence- and a bit of a bad message about the lines you shouldn't cross (sneaking out at night, leaving his little sister home alone, etc). Amber's connection to the old folks at Happy Days is touching and Sam's relationship with his sister is realistic most of the time. My only real gripes are that the resolution felt incomplete because grouchy, complaining neighbor Mrs. Watson should have been mentioned and wasn't and Sam's parents' divorce, while mentioned, didn't rate much more than Sam's periodic sorrow that he could no longer play one parent against the other. Still a nice story, especially for dog lovers! - AnnaLovesBooks, 2008