I Love Dogs

I know, I've talked about this before-a lot.  But it's true! I really do love dogs.  And in today's book,Ginger Pye by Elanor Estes, the title character is a dog!  How great is that! I mean the book is really the story of two siblings who get a dog as a pet and all of the adventures they have with the dog, but still it's mostly about the dog.


And Ginger Pye is filled with all of the happy, delightful, silly things that I love the most about dogs.  The first is the way owners take such pride in their dogs.  This is how Ginger's owner, Jerry, describes Ginger, "He was still just a tiny puppy, yet he could already catch things in his mouth! Soon he would know everything."  But my favorite part about this book were the chapters where Ginger speaks for himself.  That's right in this book Ginger is not just a silent pet but a fully developed character with thoughts and actions.


Here is one of my favorite excerpts from Ginger's thoughts, "There was another dog in this house and he was in the shiny mirror! Ginger Pye gave this new dog a friendly woof for he did not realize all in a second that this was his enemy dog that was going to torment him and only stay in shiny places."  Ginger's enemy dog is of course Ginger's reflection but that's not how dogs think.  Este captured perfectly the way I always picture dogs thinking and it was a delight to read.


This book has heart, and an inspiring story but what I most love about it was that was fun.  Yes there is a deeper message but I want this post to just celebrate the whimsy and fun that I so cherished in this book.


Embracing the fun...that's kids stuff.