Espen Dekko

Paws and Edward is a beautiful story about the heartbreaking loss of a pet who dies of old age. We lost our two elderly dogs when our children were young toddlers. It was a huge loss for us and also for the kids in a very different way.

This book allows you to walk through the process of death and grief from both the dog's perspective and the child's which I thought was a lovely and touching idea. Paws and Edward approaches the topic of death but isn't scary and I would have loved to have a show more book like to read with our children when we lost our dogs.

I loved how the book acknowledged the loss and also honored the memories and years they did have together and was targeted perfectly for a younger audience but was also enjoyable as an adult reader.

The illustrations are simple and work so well for this powerful and relatable story. Thank you to NetGalley and Kids Can Press for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. show less

This story is a sweet one--of a dog living out its last days. I wasn't fully expecting that when I read it. So I was sad. However, I think it is a great one to add to lists. Parents who are looking for ways to handle grief/loss over a pet--this should be considered.

Fun fact: It was originally published in Norway and translates really well!

I love dogs. I love dog books. Usually a picture book for children about dogs covers some point in a dog's life in which the dog is energetic and fun-loving. Even when a dog book is sad it has a hopeful point. This book is just seriously depressing and makes me remember only the hard part about owning a pet and that is losing it.