Goosed! - Softcover

Wallace, Bill

Softcover

ISBN 10: 068986681X ISBN 13: 9780689866814

Publisher: Aladdin, 2004

Synopsis

One dog too many
T.P. is Jeff's dog. Jeff is T.P.'s boy. That's the way T.P. likes it. Life is pretty good -- until a stinky, thumping, yapping box turns up at the front door. Jeff's friend Mandy has given Jeff a chocolate Lab puppy. They name her Mocha, and everything changes for T.P. Mocha drives him nuts with her endless chattering and questions. On top of all that, everyone keeps telling him to "be nice to the puppy." If only things could go back to the way they were before....
But when Mocha gets "GOOSED," will T.P. have the courage and compassion to come to her rescue?

About this title

About the Author

Bill Wallace grew up in Oklahoma. Along with riding their horses, he and his friends enjoyed campouts and fishing trips. Toasting marshmallows, telling ghost stories to scare one another, and catching fish was always fun.
One of the most memorable trips took place on the far side of Lake Lawtonka, at the base of Mt. Scott. He and his best friend, Gary, spent the day shooting shad with bow and arrows, cutting bank poles, and getting ready to go when their dads got home from work.
Although there was no "monster" in Lake Lawtonka, one night there was a "sneak attack" by a rather large catfish tail. Checking the bank poles was not nearly as fun or "free" after that point, but it was the inspiration for this story.
Bill Wallace has won nineteen children's state awards and been awarded the Arrell Gibson Lifetime Achievement Award for Children's Literature from the Oklahoma Center for the Book.

From School Library Journal

Grade 2-4-Told from a bird dog's point of view, this sibling-rivalry story chronicles the arrival and gradual assimilation of a puppy into the family. T.P.'s narration has its funny moments as he pouts, growls at Mocha's incessant questions, and thinks that he has outfaced three coyotes before seeing that he has been rescued by the appearance of Jeff, his boy. The older dog is able to prove himself, however, when a Canada goose tries to attack the swimming puppy and nearly drowns her. Wallace creates plausible doglike thoughts and selects what T.P. is able to comprehend: he can decipher human talk, but doesn't understand telephones, television, or the remote-controlled "magic gate." He has a doggy nose for scents, enjoys marking the territory as he checks out the rural property, and treats the family cat with friendly camaraderie. Some readers may enjoy the budding romance between Jeff and Mocha's former owner, but it's difficult from the text to determine how old these children are. They appear to be about 10 or 11 in Rogers's pencil-sketched illustrations. Less stylish and demanding than James Howe's "Bunnicula" series, this beginning chapter book should appeal to fans of talking-animal stories and those looking for a light and humorous read.
Susan Hepler, Burgundy Farm Country Day School, Alexandria, VA
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Aladdin
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 068986681X
• ISBN 13: 9780689866814
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 128
• Illustrator: Rogers Jacqueline