Having rescued a group of abandoned greyhounds from a desert building, thirteen-year-old Josh plans to race one named Ratzo until he discovers the cruelty of the sport
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Grade 4-7-Josh Marks and his best friend, Bernie Stein, find and rescue a group of greyhounds, caged and left to die in the Arizona desert. Predictably, each boy is allowed to nurse one of the dogs back to health, and Josh picks Ratzo, known in the race world as Raj Ratoon Racer. His parents are reluctant to let him keep the dog permanently, and he hopes to gain support from his grandfather. Pap, a retired reference librarian, vows to find the culprits who abandoned the animals and wants Josh to help. There are no surprises when Pap solves the mystery, because only one suspect is introduced. Crisp uses the library setting to weave facts about greyhounds and racing into the story; an afterword gives readers even more information. However, some of the character traits are unbelievable. For example, Josh is anxious to race Ratzo again, even after seeing the miserable state of the abandoned animals. He changes his mind once he is actually at the racetrack, but later enters him in another race. Josh does mature, but the ordering of events takes away from his character development. The ending, in which Josh's parents let him keep Ratzo after Pap dies, is anticlimactic. There is some good writing here, but it needs more polish to make it shine.
Linda L. Plevak, Alamo Area Library System, San Antonio, TX
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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