Middle Grade Monday Arc Review: Secondhand Dogs by Carolyn Crimi

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

Secondhand Dogs by Carolyn Crimi and illustrated by Melissa Manwill. 250 p. Balzer + Bray/ HarperCollins Publishers, July 6, 2021. 9780062989208. (Review of arc courtesy of Blue Slip Media.)

Happy first Monday of summer break! How's your summer reading going so far? Middle Grade Monday features Secondhand Dogs by Carolyn Crimi and illustrated by Melissa Manwill. This heartwarming story is told in the third-person from multiple points of view-canine, feline and human. Miss Lottie has opened her home and her heart to shelter animals. Quinn is the neighborhood boy who often helps Miss Lottie and is dealing with grief over the death of his father as well as a pack of bullies that includes his older brother. There's Gus, whom Miss Lottie adopted first, Ghost, a reclusive cat, Tank, Roo and Moon Pie, the youngest of the bunch.  Moon Pie is missing his owner, Gertie. He thinks Gertie is away on vacation. Unfortunately, she died and Miss Lottie and the pack want to protect Moon Pie. 

When Miss Lottie brings Decker home, it is with the understanding that Gus needs to approve the new addition. There's something about Decker that doesn't sit well with Gus, but Miss Lottie seems to have her heart set on adopting Decker, so he acquiesces. It doesn't take Decker long to begin undermining the happiness of the pack and setting in motion a plan to get rid of the rest of the pack.

What a gift of a book for dog lovers young and old. I just loved this. As the POV shifts, the reader gains insight into the personality and past of each character. The illustrations were unfinished in the arc I read, but help convey the personalities of the characters and tension in the story. Decker is one dangerous dude. Don't miss Secondhand Dogs if you love a good dog story. It publishes July 6.