Along Came a Dog

Splendid. When I was a child I would have loved it even more than I loved [b:The Incredible Journey|231821|The Incredible Journey|Sheila Burnford|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1388607402s/231821.jpg|1757548]. It's lovely to read something by DeJong that takes place on just a couple of acres, too, as his 'quest' stories tend to be wearying to me. The animals are themselves, but also have so much personality... brilliant. I agree it's not for everyone, so I'm not comfortable giving if five full stars, but I really do appreciate and recommend it.

Not your usual talking animals with human-like personalities in this book. Most of the characters in this book are animals, and they think and act the way real animals do.
It is the story of a little red hen, who is rejected by the flock of chickens after she loses her toes, "the man" who owns the chickens, and takes a liking to the little red hen, trying to make a pet out of her, and "the dog" who wanders onto the farm as a stray and tries to make a home there.
The story line is simple and the dialogue minimal. It has a certain sweet gentleness to it, but for my taste, I prefer the more usual talking animals that allow for deeper thought and more complex plots.

A refreshingly quiet and gentle book -- explores loyalty and courage through careful and slow development of character rather than non-stop action and wisecracking. It may take children who are steeped on TV and TV-styled fiction a while to get into this, but persistence will pay off before too long as the unlikely relationship that develops between a stray dog, a courageous hen, and a kind man becomes completely engaging.

Sweet story of a dog who protects a disfigured hen and wins a place with the owner. I liked the story well enough, although in the middle of the story I started feeling impatient, as though the story were being strung out unnaturally. I'd rather this have been about four chapters shorter. With a predictable and happy end, it's nice for animal lovers, but not a book I'd require of every student.

Such a cute book! I love old kids books like this and was glad I picked this one up. I liked the illustrations and human-like qualities of the animals.

A simple gem of a book that deserves to be in any childs library.

AR: 5.7