Dingo

Miguel, a high school senior, is quite intrigued when Lainey, and her dingo, Em, wander into the comic store owned by his father. Lainey and her stepfather have recently moved from Australia, and she is being home-schooled, which explains why Miguel has never seen her before. There is an attraction between them and Miguel decides that he must see her again. That proves to be confusing because when he next meets her, she acts like a completely different person, and at the time, he doesn’t understand her aloofness. Lainey is actually in great danger, and Miguel and Johnny Ward, end up helping Lainey and Ema face the danger confronting them. This is a fast paced, enjoyable fantasy read where the fantasy elements do not detract from the show more plot. It also does not end with everyone living happily ever after, so I found the conclusion quite satisfying and totally believable. show less

I'm glad I slipped this in before the end of the month because I was in a bit of a slump and de Lint's work always makes me happy. This isn't his most profound book, but I enjoyed it none-the-less.

Dingo follows Miguel as he meets Lainey and her large, strange looking dog, Em. Miguel and Lainey bond quickly, but Lainey explains that they can't see each other often because her step-father keeps her homeschooled and won't let her have friends over. After their second meeting, Miguel gets the cold shoulder from Lainey and she almost seems to act like a different person. He gives her another chance though, and she explains that she has an identical twin, but one of them must always stay in their dingo form in order to avoid their father, show more Tallyman, who is trying to kidnap them and hand them over to an ancient dingo who needs their blood to free himself from his mystic prison.

Miguel is a good narrator and I enjoyed his skepticism at the magic he encountered - I can't stand when magical things happen to protagonists who don't know magic is real and they just go "oh, ok." As usual, I enjoyed the way de Lint weaves Native American lore and culture into modern-day, urban settings. Many of his stories feel connected, so even when you're reading about new characters, the world feels familiar.

The romance was a little cheesy, however, Miguel is aware of the insta-love nature of his relationship with Lainey, so I was more forgiving in this case. Though their relationship is key to the story, it doesn't feel like it, because I was more interested in the magical happenings.

This is one of those YA books that doesn't feel YA (to me) and if you're looking for a quick urban fantasy read, or you're already a fan of de Lint's, I'd recommend it. show less

I'm in love with the characters. The story is fairly simple, and simply told, the sort of story I've heard from him before. It has a young man as a protagonist, which is fairly rare for De Lint. Altogether I found it engaging and good, but I can't help missing the more fleshed out complications of his stories for adults.

This small and potent book begins as the main character Miguel is working in his father's record shop and told through his voice as he meets the girl who seems to be everything he could want in a girl. Then things start to get complicated as he discovers that she's not all she seems and he and the town bully find themselves pulled into a world of myth and stories that they never imagined. Their stories don't wrap up with a perfectly happy ending but the importance of knowing what's worth fighting for in terms of family and love and friendship come through. The two boys fight to rescue the twin sisters Em and Lainey who have been running from the fact that only they can set free Dingo. The ending is unexpected and thought provoking as is show more most of this book as it looks at different sorts of families and romances and the importance of honesty. A mature middle school reader will get a lot from this book but a high school student will probably find more connections as they see themselves within the complex romances that are presented. There is violence but its done thoughtfully so that while it is brutal, its not without consequences. A well done book that captures the difficult world of finding someone you connect to as a teenager while also understanding what's worth fighting for. show less

The story is charming, but I kept wondering - why are these girls from an ancient Australian lineage white redheads? The shadow of cultural appropriation has often muffled my enjoyment of de Lint and it irritated me a little more than usual this time.

A sweet YA urban fantasy about love and magic, shapeshifters and bullies.
Charles de Lint is an expert at mergeng the mundane with the magical, and his romantic world view is expressed with great sensibility and respect for volatile teenage emotions.
Miguel works afternoons in his fathers comics bookstore, while going to high school. One day a beautiful girl with a dog comes into the shop, and he falls in love. The girl, Lainey, turns out to be in the kind of trouble where an immortal being wants her blood.
To save her Miguel has to accept that magic is real and very dangerous, and go up against the local bully, as well as more magical opponents.

Miguel is working in his dad's comic book/record store one afternoon when a girl he doesn't know wonders in. Lainey is beautiful, with a sense of humor, intelligence, an Australian accent, red-gold hair, and a matching dog--excuse me, dingo. The two hit it off immediately, but weird things start to happen--and it all seems to center around the dingo.

I love, love, love Charles de Lint's books. I'm just starting to wish that he would get away from writing young adult books. They're probably a good introduction to this wonderful author for young fantasy fans, but I know de Lint can write stuff that is so much better. There's not really anything technically wrong with this. If I were a 14-year-old girl, I would probably adore it. But I'm show more not 14 anymore (thank goodness!) and I'm really missing the Charles de Lint characters I fell in love with a long time ago.

If you're a fan of Charles de Lint, go ahead and read this. You might even want to buy it for any young fans of fantasy you know. But please don't start with this one if you're an adult wanting to see what Charles de Lint is all about. Start with Someplace to be Flying or The Onion Girl instead. show less