Dog Sense [Paperback]

Sneed B. Collard III (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

MONTANA IS A LONG WAY from California. Thirteen-year-old Guy is trying to make the best of a difficult situation. He and his mother have moved in with his grandfather after his father's "unannounced departure." Back home, Guy skateboarded, surfed, and played video games with his friends. Here the kids only seem to talk about cars, fishing, and hunting.

Life at Big Sky Middle School is also a disappointment. Guy is bored in math class and over his head in English. He quickly becomes a target for Brad Mullen, class bully. But at least Guy has his beloved Border collie, Streak, and eventually he makes a friend, classmate Luke Grant. Soon Guy and Luke hatch a plan to train Streak to compete against Brad Mullen and his dog at the town's Frisbee catching competition. But the rivalry between Guy and Brad escalates until an impulsive wager pits the boys head to head and places Streak in jeopardy.

Veteran author Sneed Collard offers young readers an affecting, realistic portrait of an adolescent boy who must learn to cope with conflicts and challenges in an unfamiliar environment and to accept changes in his life that are beyond his control.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-7–Thirteen-year-old Guy's favorite hobbies were skateboarding, surfing, and playing video games with his friends, but that was in California before his dad left and he and his mother moved in with Grandpa. Kids in Montana don't do the same things and, besides, he has no friends. Brad, the school bully, is using him as his own personal punching bag. He eventually becomes friends with Luke Grant, who suggests that Guy's Border collie might be a good candidate for the annual Frisbee-catching contest. Since Brad's German shepard is the current favorite, Guy's entry intensifies their rivalry. When he bets Brad for ownership of his beloved pet, readers share his desperation to best the bully. An easy read with believable characters, the story has enough action to keep reluctant readers interested.–Kathryn Childs, Morris Mid/High School, OK
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

Gr. 5-8. For 13-year-old Guy Martinez, moving with his mom to Coffee, Montana, to live with Grandpa was the last thing he wanted. He misses his California friends and home, and on his first day at school he's targeted by a bully, Brad, and gets lectured by the principal. Still, he has Streak, his beloved dog; makes a new friend, Luke, who helps train Streak for Frisbee-catching competitions; and discovers that he actually enjoys English class. Then Brad's bullying encroaches on the dog competitions, and Luke's family suffers a crisis. It's crusty, likable Grandpa who helps Guy understand how "the best victory is one where the other guy wins, too." Guy is an appealing, sympathetic protagonist, whose straightforward narrative describes the challenges of uprooting, making friends, and facing difficult people and life events. Try this with Bill Wallace's fans. Shelle Rosenfeld
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Peachtree Publishers; Reprint edition (October 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1561454605
• ISBN-13: 978-1561454600
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #943,173 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars brian's review, November 8, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Dog Sense (Hardcover)

I liked the book, because it's about dogs. Every person in my family has a dog, except. me. I like playing catch with them and being around them.
The story is about dogs that play Frisbee. The main characters are Guy Martinez and his dog Streak, Brad Mullen and his dog Shep. Guy has just moved from California and his Mom bought him a dog to get his mind off his Dad. They now live in Montana with his grandpa. Brad Mullen is a bully that has won the Frisbee contest two years in a row. He always comes in third in the finals. Brad always beats up Guy before and after school. Guy tries to make deals but Brad never listens. He finally agrees to, if Guy wins he stops bullying kids and if Brad wins he gets Streak.
I would recommend this book to anyone that likes dogs. This book is funny but sometimes sad. Anyone that likes those kinds of books would like it too.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Alexandra C., November 4, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Dog Sense (Hardcover)

Have you ever bet something that was very important to you? If so, you can probably relate to Guy. He was very nervous that he would lose his precious border collie named Streak because of a very threatening bet.

Dog Sense is a fictional novel by Sneed B. Collard III. Collard wrote many other books as well, like Flash Point and Shep: Our Most Loyal Dog.

13-year-old Guy was upset that he moved into his grandfather's house in Montana, since it was very different from California. Guy got a dog named Streak, and he was very intelligent and good at catching Frisbees. Guy did not realize this until he met a friend at school named Luke.

Guy's new school in Montana is called Big Sky Middle School. On the first day at his new school, a bully named Brad Mullen crashed him against the brick wall and told Guy that he doesn't like Californians. He then met Luke, who helped Guy discover what a phenomenal frisbee dog Streak is when he played Frisbee with Streak one day after school. Luke makes a suggestion to Guy that he enters Streak in a Frisbee contest. Streak does one competition and then he is entered into another, as well as Brad Mullen's dog that wins almost every contest. But one day, Guy stands up to Brad and somehow ends up betting that if Streak loses, Brad gets to keep him. Luke and Guy are very nervous as they prepare and heavily train Streak for the big day.

I recommend Dog Sense to people 8 and older that like happy endings and dogs. This book was full of competition and I wasn't able to put it down, especially when it was the day of the big contest.

Even though the cover of this book seemed boring, I picked it out anyway. It turned out good, reminding me to never judge a book by its cover. Collard is a great author and I wish to read many more books by him.