Dog

Life does not begin well for Le Chien (a name he acquires later from his young mistress, La Pomme). He is the runt of the litter and ugly to boot. His owner decides to do away with him by drowning him. So it is already a bit remarkable that he survives that particular attempted canicide and ends up in the community dump. There he has the good fortune to fall under the protection of a large, old, female dog, La Gueule Noire. She teaches him some of the essentials of what he will need to stay alive. All about smells and, importantly, the necessity of dodging. But along with good fortune, misfortune too seems to follow Le Chien. The package, however, is mixed enough that he survives a number of early scrapes and eventually finds a mistress show more whom he believes will be his boon companion until the end. Well, it’s not all plain sailing ahead, naturally. And drama ensues.

This is a delightful tale told from the point of view of Le Chien but, mostly, without the anthropomorphism that typically accompanies such books. Le Chien is always a dog. He has one or two dog-mentors who perhaps are a bit too knowing, but its a minor distraction. Le Chien is very sympathetic, though filled with night terrors and a black-and-white view of injustice. He knows when he’s been harmed and he is not above vengeance. But it is his relationship with La Pomme that everything turns on and that, as it develops, is wonderful to see.

Daniel Pennac has a marvellous lightness of touch combined with a narrative drive that keeps you reading page after page. Even if your French is as modest as mine. Highly recommended. show less

A very sweet story! I am a sucker for animal stories and I am finding that the sadder they are the more I connect with them! This is certainly a sad one but it does have many happy times throughout the story and it does end well for Dog. Dog is a stray that just wants to be loved and who just wants to find an owner. He knows what he is looking for but has a real hard time finding those qualities in a human. There are a wide variety of characters, all of which are dynamic and rich. This would be a great book to use as a read aloud to get the kids talking about how animals might feel or imagining how things might feel or what they woud tell us if they could communicate or talk.

Dog had a tough time as a puppy – he narrowly escaped drowning and ended up living in the rubbish tip. When his best friend dies he decides it is time to find an owner. It takes some time to find one and even then his trials are not over.
This is a light and amusing book written from a dog’s point of view. It would suit animal lovers 9 and up.

I don't read many books from the point of view of an animal, but this was a nice one. I felt so bad for the poor thing. Such a stressful life. So confused all the time. I would have taken him home. People are mean.

A sad look of the life of a stray. Abuse and sadness, but has a happy ending. Worth reading. Well Written.

I read it when I was a child, but I don't remember the year exactly.
I remember that I enjoyed it, but it wasn't remarkable very much.

Con la mia valigia di perplessità inizio questo breve racconto di Daniel Pennac che ha come soggetto un cane, anzi Il cane. È la storia di uno dei tanti cagnolini che si trovano ad affrontare lo strano mondo degli uomini cercando qualcuno a cui, semplicemente, dare amore, tanto amore. È la storia dei tanti Pumba del mondo in attesa di un padrone, e Pennac con il garbo che gli è solito, riesce a commuovere con un racconto per ragazzi. Il cane è un randagio coccolato da una cagnetta adottiva, Muso nero, che lo cresce in una discarica di Nizza. Ma presto Il cane rimane nuovamente orfano perché la mamma viene investita da un frigorifero e non può che cercare una nuova vita, questa volta nei bassifondi di Nizza. Ma ben presto il cane show more viene preso e portato in un canile dove condividerà la sorte degli altri cani. Tre giorni in attesa di un’adozione, o la morte. Che angoscia in quelle pagine. Ma ecco che arriva una famiglia e Mela, una strana ragazzina, decisamente viziata, lo salva, lo sceglie e lo porta a casa sua a Parigi. Il cane entra in una casa, ma chiaramente non è gradito alla madre e al padre che, alla fine lo abbandoneranno all’insaputa della ragazzina. Il cane si salva e torna a Parigi e organizza una terribile vendetta, la casa delle bestie che lo hanno abbandonato verrà messa, letteralmente, a ferro e a fuoco, ma la stanza di Mela, quella no. Quando la famiglia torna dalle vacanze trova la casa distrutta, ma il vero problema è che la ragazza è malata, non mangia più da quando non c’è più Il cane. Ed il finale riscatta le sofferenze di queste pagine. Erika ha decisamente indovinato il libro e, intanto, io mi coccolo il mio piccolo Pumbariello, con il sorriso della poverissima Gennariella. show less