Dogtown by Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko (SSYRA)

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Description:

Dogtown is a shelter for stray dogs, misbehaving dogs, and discarded robot dogs, whose owners have outgrown them. Chance, a real dog, has been in Dogtown since her owners unwittingly left her with irresponsible dog-sitters who skipped town. Metal Head is a robot dog who dreams of being back in a real home. And Mouse is a mouse who has the run of Dogtown, pilfering kibble, and performing clever feats to protect the dogs he loves. When Chance and Metal Head embark on an adventure to find their forever homes, there is danger, cheese sandwiches, a charging station, and some unexpected kindnesses along the way.

Age Recommendation: 8-12, or 2nd-5th grade

General Content:

Language: 0/10- Little to no derogatory language/ references.

Alcohol & Drugs: 0/10- No alcohol or drug content.

Violence & Gore: 1/10- The dog sitter and her boyfriend get into a (verbal) fight, angrily, she launches a salami at the wall.

Sexual Content: 1/10- Little to no sexual content. A kiss on the cheek.

Parent Guide:

Tropes: Unlikely friends, animal narrator, overcoming heartbreak.

Ch. 24

-Chance the dog talks about how lonely she was when she first arrived at dogtown (the shelter) and what she did to pass the time: “I did all the usual things to keep myself occupied. I scratched my ears. I gnawed my paws. I cleaned my private parts. And I dreamed of my [food] bowl at the Bessers’”.

Ch. 46

-One of the dogs came to Dogtown because her owner “had gone to the great dog show in the sky”.

Ch. 83

-Chance tells her friend Metal Head how she ended up at the shelter. In her story, her owners went on a trip and left her with a dog sitter. One day, Chance mentions that the dog sitter's boyfriend came over and how much she disliked both the sitter and the boyfriend. She mentions that “the dog sitter's boyfriend didn’t care for me. And as far as I could tell, he didn’t care for the dog-sitter either. Humans are confusing. No dog would stay with a mate who treated her badly. Sure, we have our share of bossy dogs. But leadership is one thing. Mistreatment is another.”

Ch. 84

-“Then one night, the dog sitter and the dog sitter's boyfriend had a terrible fight. The boyfriend said mean things I’m not going to repeat. The dog sitter hurled a salami against the wall.”

-Chance dashes toward the salami and gets in trouble. She gets put out for the night as punishment. While she’s out, the boyfriend loses control of his truck and accidentally runs over Chance's leg. She wakes up at the vet with three legs.

Ch. 85

-Afraid she won’t get paid, the dog sitter and her boyfriend don’t want to tell Chance's owners about the incident. So, they decide to lie and say Chance ran away. She kisses her boyfriend on the cheek for creating the plan.