The Last Dog on Earth [Paperback]

Daniel Ehrenhaft (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 8, 2004 | Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

Logan Moore hates everyone. The father who abandoned him. The stepfather who wants to control him. Kids who get in his face. Everyone. Except Jack. A mangy mutt that nobody wants. Except Logan. He doesn’t care that Jack has already bitten three workers at the animal shelter or that she’s ugly. She’s the only one who doesn’t want anything from him and that’s enough for Logan.
But Jack is in terrible danger. A mysterious disease is sweeping across the country, turning dogs into vicious, raging predators. Jack isn’t infected, but that won’t keep her safe. People are shooting dogs on sight, and asking questions later. Logan’s own parents want to hand Jack over to the authorities. Now Logan and Jack are on the run. There’s nowhere they can turn and no one they
can trust.
Except each other.


From the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-9-In this boy-and-his-dog tale with a twist, Logan Moore, 14, doesn't measure up to the expectations of his mom and stepdad, and is friendless at school. His one interest, inventing electronic gadgets, only gives vent to mischievous impulses. The teen lacks direction and self-esteem until he adopts Jack, a wild and mangy mutt. Initially, Logan is a reluctant caregiver, but real affection and trust soon blossom between the two as he proves himself to be a loving and effective trainer. The twist is provided by the emergence of a deadly and contagious disease that causes infected canines to become vicious before they die. These events are revealed through textual inserts (news reports, e-mails, etc.). A parallel story line involves a renegade scientist who may hold the key to developing a vaccine against POS, which can be developed from the blood of an immune animal. The disparate plots come together as Logan, running away with Jack from mandatory quarantine or worse, stumbles upon the scientist, who turns out to be his biological father, whom he hasn't seen in years. The dog proves to be immune and provides the life-saving solution to the scientific puzzle but sadly dies from brutal injuries inflicted by vigilantes. Last Dog is a fast-paced novel with stark language, and readers will be sympathetic to the pair's plight. However, one-dimensional characters and an unconvincing denouement ultimately reduce the book to the equivalent of a fast-food meal.
Mary Ann Carcich, Mattituck-Laurel Public Library, Mattituck, NY
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

“A smartly written, thoroughly engrossing tale.”—Publishers Weekly

“A fast-paced novel with stark language . . . readers will be sympathetic to the pair’s plight.”—School Library Journal

“Nicely written with a sprinkling of humor amid the pages of action and adventure.”—VOYA

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Yearling (June 8, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440419506
• ISBN-13: 978-0440419501
• Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.6 x 7.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #385,901 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Realistically written story, December 16, 2005

By 

Heather A. Rhoades "hannamyluv" (Bedford, OH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Last Dog on Earth (Paperback)

We read this book for my son's school book club (he is in 4th grade).

I really, really enjoyed this book on an adult level. I was an english major and sometimes read books a bit differently than others because of it. This book was interesting for me because the characters were so well thought out by the author. Many of the children (and some of the adults) missed this fact but if you thought about it, all the characters reacted to their situations in very real ways. The children in the club wanted to reduce everyone to "good" or "bad" people and the fact that none really were one or the other opened up some nice conversations about human nature and is there really such thing as a purly "good" person or a purely "bad" person.

The book is a bit brutal in its description about how the dogs are treated, die and are killed. It is not anything that a child who was comfortable with the scarier parts of the later Harry Potter books could not handle. But, be warned, this book is a tear jerker. The author shows how humans react when they are faced with the tragic unknown, in all of their good and bad ways.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An ExcitingThriller, May 9, 2005

A Kid's Review

This review is from: The Last Dog on Earth (Hardcover)

A very exciting novel this book keeps you awake. It's actually scientifically informative. I could not put it down,I actually got in trouble for staying up past my bedtime(9:00)and reading until 11:00. It shows the story from different three points of view. From the points of view of Dr.Westerly,(the main scientist)

Jack (the last dog aforementioned in the title),and from the point of view of Logan Moore(Jack's owner and Dr.Westerley's son)

this book will highly interest you especially if you like animal stories and adventure. The Last Dog On Earth will make you laugh and make some people cry. This book is suspenseful,funny,sad,and very exciting. I give this book five stars and highly reccomend it to everyone.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Review of Daniel Ehrenhaft's The Last Dog on Earth, March 3, 2011

A Kid's Review

This review is from: The Last Dog on Earth (Paperback)

Can you imagine a horribly contagious dog disease going around that you can get too? That's what fourteen year old Logan Moore has to deal with. If you want a book that has action constantly then this is the book for you. Daniel Ehrenhaft's Last Dog on Earth is definitely a page turner.

Logan's life is not a happy one especially with his demanding stepdad Robert. Robert always makes Logan do things that Robert did when he was a kid, even if Logan doesn't want to. When his stepdad sees that the neighbors have a trained pure bred dog, he says Logan has to get one too. Robert wants him to get a Labrador, but Logan wants to get a mutt at the pound. So without his stepdad's permission, he decides to get a mutt at the pound. Because of the dog disease, Logan has to watch out for men who are randomly shooting all dogs no matter if they have the disease or not. People were getting it too! They would drool, get violent, and go crazy! This book is also an easy read, and I didn't have trouble following the characters. It takes place in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, in Newburg and Portland, Oregon.

I really liked the book because time flew by when I read it, and the characters brought me swiftly through the chapters until it ended. This book didn't make you say at the end, "What happened to Logan?" It definitely was a conclusive book. I recommend this book to people who are seeking adventure. My only complaints were some inaccuracies. The first one was that dogs don't have collar bones and the second one was that there's no such thing as a rabies test on a living dog. If you can overlook these faults, then I recommend this book to you.

Review by Maddy V.