Dogs of the Deadlands

Blather: How my days at school go:  I have a class visit the library six out of eight periods of the day. They have a brief lesson and check out books, which takes about 15 minutes. I also check out Chromebooks to study hall students, then have children visit to get books while I am checking in books from the class. There are tech issues that come in from teachers I need to address. Sometimes I have full period research classes, and on many days I have classes at the beginning AND end of the period. This year, there are very small study halls during lunch periods, which means just a few students. There are book orders and lessons to work on, book repair, weeding-- it's always busy. 2:00 usually finds me trying to bolt down a cup of tea and an apple that I started at 10:30. I don't have student helpers, so can't leave the library for more than a few moments, usually to stand in the hallway between classes to encourage students to walk. 

During the few quiet moments, I often have protracted conversations with students, who seem to think that I am a warm, fuzzy grandmotherly type. Sometimes it is about their lives, but mostly it is about books. A girl who wants to read historical fiction about Japan. A fan of Dungeons and Dragons who wants instruction books. Readers who want to read nothing but sports books. One of my students loves books involving anything to do with dogs, and he truly has read most of my books where the dogs have adventures. We looked up titles in the Follett catalog, and came across this one. he seemed so excited about it that I ordered it before I even read it, which I rarely do. 

I'm not at all interested in books from the dogs' points of view, but the school library is not MY library. It's important to listen to what students are interested in, and try to accomodate it within reason. There are only so many books about serial killers written for middle grades that I am willing to buy!My student was super excited to get this book, even if it wasn't my personal favorite.

McGowan, Anthony. Dogs of the Deadlands
September 1, 2022 by Rock the Boat

Library copy

**Spoiler Alert**

Natasha has just gotten a beautiful and affectionate puppy she has named Zoya. She's always wanted a dog, even though her father is not thrilled with the idea. Unfortunately, she lives in Chernobyl in 1986, and her family has to evacuate when the nuclear power plant has a melt down. She tries to sneak Zoya out in her backpack, but the animal is discovered by soldiers and left at the side of the road. Natasha's family moves in with an aunt away from Chernobyl and go on with their lives, and Zoya briefly is cared for by an old woman in the woods. The perspective shifts, and we see the world from the perspective of Misha, a wild puppy whose brother, Bratan, has a deformity of his legs. Along with their mother, they live in the woods and just try to survive. We see glimpses of Natasha as she grows up and studies science, and follow Misha's life as well. Eventually, his mother is badly injured and is saved by an old woman. There are a number of coincidences that lead Natasha to find out that Misha is the son of her dog, Zoya, after doing a survey of the area affected by the radiation and the animals that stayed there. 

Strengths: The blurb says this is for fans of Watership Down and Call of the Wild, which is apt but not very helpful, since middle school students never read those titles anymore! Interestingly, I do occasionally get requests for books about wolves in the wild, and this will be close enough. The page decorations are a nice touch, and the details about living in the wild and puppies eating regurgitated worms will appeal to fans of Hunter's Survivors or Lorentz's Dogs of the Drowned City. The brief amounts of information about Chernobyl disaster might encourage readers to pick up Marino's Escape from Chernobyl. 
Weaknesses: I'm not much for narratives told from a dog's perspective, and I somehow missed where Misha was the son of Zoya. After the whole regurgitated worm thing, I found it a little hard to concentrate. 
What I really think: This was a solid purchase that I don't regret, and will see slow but steady circulation. In the last ten years, interest in books about dogs has slowly increased: one of my frequent displays is books with dogs on the cover, right along with horror, sports books, and books about WWII.