The Murder of Hound Dog Bates

Sassaafrass Bates (yep, that's his name) is a dirt poor country youngun. His Ma is dead, his Pa gone, and he lives on a weather-beaten old farm with his three aunts. According to him, one aunt is downright sneaky, another has cold black eyes and thin lips, and the third is nothin' but mean lookin'. One of them (he's not certain which, yet) has sure enough killed his pet hound dog, and he's gonna get even--just short of murder. Well, things don't work out the way Sass has figured they might and that's what's so interesting. You'll find the story funny--even though Sass is dead serious. [Humorous realistic fiction--with a poor rural setting--suitable for grades three through seven.] A Non-Workbook, Non-Textbook Approach to Teaching Language Arts: Grades 4 Through 8 and Up