Michelle Superle

Black Dog Dream Dog is truly a beautiful little story. It is simple but well written. Many young readers will be able to relate to the feelings Sam had like wanting more freedom to choose her own activities and wanting to have a pet of her choice. Although Sam loves the dog and would like to keep him for herself, she is able to make some grown-up decisions concerning him that end up turning out wonderful.
I loved the book and was captivated by the illustrations. I will recommend this book to show more children and their parents. show less

While reading this book I was shocked by how much the main character, Sam, lied and seemed to think it was fine. Even her best friend, Jazzy, encouraged her in this bad behavior. The book had a great plot, was written in an interesting way, and included varied characters. There is the absent father, overbearing mother, flashy friend that can do anything she wants, a stroke victim in a nursing home, and a main character that is plain and lonely, and feels restricted. Finally, there are two show more dogs. The first belongs to Sam. He is white, small, and boring. The second dog belongs to someone else. He is big, Black and exciting. He is Black Dog Dream Dog.
I would not recommend this book for independent reading. There are too many things that should be discussed such as: Is lying ok? How would a responsible person handle this situation? What happens when you lie and get caught? Is it ok to hide things from your parents that you know they don't like? On the other hand, this book in a group setting could promote a lively discussion of right and wrong. show less

A somewhat simple but enjoyable read - eleven year-old Sam finds a giant black dog and immediately knows there's something special about him. However, there's no way her strict mother would ever let her keep him - so Sam undertakes the monstrous task of taking care of Horatio on her own while keeping him a secret.

The best way to describe this would be cute, I think. The story is sweet, but Sam is, unfortunately, just not a very interesting character - relatable, perhaps, but there's nothing show more really special about her. The best part about this book for me was undoubtedly Horatio. As a confirmed dog lover and proud owner of a giant dog myself, I felt all the passages about Horatio's calming and beyond endearing personality very viscerally. I'm currently away at college and now have a desperate longing to cuddle with my own baby! Anyway, I did really like Stella's character - I found it very much more interesting and developed than either Sam's or her mom's.

Overall, a sweet book. I'm sure I would have lapped it up in grade school, but I found it a bit lacking at times. Extra half star for the lovely illustrations! show less

I absolutely loved this book. It was fast paced and held my interest from beginning to end...granted it is only 142 pages. I really enjoyed the chapters alternating with different points of view from Sam or Stella, and of course Horatio/Little Bear too. I think it realistically portrays the relationship between mother and daughter. Mom being the over achiever Super Mom having her daughter's time totally structured with one activity or another and Sam just wanting to "hang out" and be normal. show more I really loved the chapters that were Stella's. To see her struggles as she copes with the after effects of a stroke unable to communicate and being worried about her dog were very insightful. I thought that showing how Sam grew in responsibility through out this ordeal was very well portrayed also. This is a book that all dog lovers will want to read and then share with their non dog loving friends because the story is so good. show less