The plot is fine, and of course the references are archaic. But I did enjoy two aspects: the chapter from the point of view of Ginger (discovering the enemy dog in the mirror, affecting a humble pose to get out of trouble, forgetting that he was trailing Jerry!), and the reminder of what it's like to be a kid. I liked the part where Rachel went to sit among the "meteors" and she reflected that grown-ups thought they were ruins of a building. A playful spirit rides through the story, but the overall effect wasn't deep enough to leave an impact. ( )

Jerry Pye wants what every boy wants – a dog to call his own. After earning the money to purchase his first dog, and doing so with little time to spare before the seller was to sell his dog to someone else, Jerry and his “Ginger” become inseparable. Despite the mysterious yellow hat man, whom Jerry believes is the man who also wanted Ginger, Jerry and his dog have many adventures around their town of Cranbury. On Thanksgiving Day, Ginger is stolen out of Jerry’s backyard, presumably by yellow hat man, and the family begins a quest to find their lost Ginger. Months pass without any clues, but on his birthday Jerry finally finds the break for which he’s been searching. Ginger Pye breaks free of her kidnapper’s confines and finds his way back to the family he loves.

This was an entertaining read. The setting transported me back to a simpler time when kids played outside and had great adventures with their friends and their dogs. I couldn’t help rooting for Jerry to figure out that his mean classmate, Wally Bullwinkle, was holding Ginger prisoner. The author gave great descriptions of some of the characters in the book, such as “perpendicular swimmer.”

In the classroom I would use this book in a literature circle featuring the works of Eleanor Estes. Ginger Pye, Pinky Pye, and The Moffats provide three choices with characters that are woven throughout the books. These choices could speak to various interests and also allow for some big group comparisons. This book would be a good one to use for comparisons between how children spend their time now versus how they spent their time before the advent of television. Students could write about how they spend a typical summer day and then compare it to how Jerry spent his days. This would be an entertaining book to use as a read aloud after lunch. ( )

Written in 1951 this book has classic charm. It's written for kids - gradeschool age - but not a bad read for adults either. It's the story of Jared Pye (Jerry) and his dog, Ginger. It opens with Jerry needing to earn a dollar to buy a puppy. His sister Rachel helps him and before long they have the smartest puppy on the block. It's not long before Ginger's talents as the smartest puppy are notice by some unsavory types and he disappears. Of course, being a book for kids it all ends well, but I won't spoil it for you. ( )

I loved it!!! ( )

Mom loved this as a kid, and I didn't read it until I was an adult, but then I loved it, too--maybe more than I would have as a kid. Adds to my dog-envy! ( )