Boys Are Dogs

Children's fiction; chick lit for girl tweens. Eleven-year old Annabelle has just moved and has trouble with the boys at her new school. They kick her chair, steal her homework, and won't stop calling her 'spaz.' One day it occurs to her that the same techniques she uses to train her new puppy also work on boys--sort of. A very enjoyable read that tween girls will likely identify with.

I loved this story about a girl who is thrown into a lot of new situations and how she deals with them. She is just starting 6th grade and is discovering boys. She coincides training her new puppy with training a boy which I thought would not make sense but it kind of does. This book is a good example of a strong, smart female role model.

Annabelle is pretty much hating the idea of leaving summer camp: while she was gone, her mom moved into a new with her boyfriend (whom Annabelle hates) and she'll be going to a new school as well. The only consolation is that she gets a new puppy to soften the blow. Turns out, though, that the new puppy is about as complicated as middle school boys - both need tons of training!

Reviewed by hoopsielv for TeensReadToo.com

Annabelle comes home from summer camp to a lot of new changes in her life. She's moving into a new house with her mom's new boyfriend.

They buy her a puppy in hopes that she will have a better adjustment.

The puppy appears to be a bouncy ball of fur, but he soon gets into everything! Annabelle certainly has her hands full! Luckily, she has a book on raising dogs that should help.

Going to a new school is another change in Annabelle's life. She had previously gone to an all-girls school, so for the first time she has boys in her classes. It only takes her a minute to realize that boys are dogs! One boy tells her to go into the wrong classroom, another kicks her chair in class, and her two lab show more partners either ignore her or make fun of her.

Annabelle's book on training dogs proves to be a bigger help than she originally plans. She can use the tips with Pepper and also with the boys at school! She's got to make them all realize that she is the boss and the dominant dog of them all!

This book was terrific! It was full of laughs and I enjoyed seeing what Annabelle planned to do next. She's a character who starts out unsure of herself but you really see her confidence grow in the book. This would be an enjoyable read for anyone, whether you are in junior high or just want to relive those memories! show less

This is Annabelle's first year in a co-ed school and the boys are jerks. But Annabelle is following a guidebook on how to train her new dog when she realizes that the same methods might work on boys. This is cute and funny. I would recommend it particularly to 6th-grade girls.

Very cute! First book in a series. 6th grader Annabelle moves to a new house when her mother decides they will move in with her boyfriend. Moving from an all girls small private school to a public school with boys proves to be a challenge. Annabelle decides to try some of the same training methods that she is using on her new puppy to deal with the boys!

Her problems with the puppy are the best parts, but there were so few. I thought that the characters were a little off. Annabelle seemed just plain stupid in the beginning and then improved. Also, I have a puppy and it seemed unrealistic how easy it was for her to train Pepper. The title got the attention of my guy friend who picked it up and asked "What is this?" sternly. Loved the title. ABout the best part of the book. Good plot too, a little more on the sense of it would have made it a ton better. AHS/KG