BooksforTopics Reading for Pleasure Recommendations
Book Title: The Dog That Saved Christmas (available here)
Author: Nicola Davies
Illustrator: Mike Byrne
Publisher: Barrington Stoke
Publication Date: October 2018
Most Suitable for: Lower KS2, or less confident readers in older years
Popular children’s author Nicola Davies returns with another wonderful book that draws out the special relationship between children and animals – this time with a festive twist. Published in Barrington Stoke’s ‘super-readable’ and dyslexia-friendly style, this is a short chapter book that readers will find easy to pick up and hard to put down.
Jake stands out from many of the other children at his school and Christmas is a time that is especially difficult for him, with the bright lights, loud noises and changes in routines causing him a great deal of anxiety. When Jake befriends a lost dog, which he calls Susan, a beautiful bond begins to form that helps Jake to stay calm and cope with the difficulties he faces. After a while, Susan’s real owners turn up to reclaim their missing dog and Jake and his family need to find a way forward while their world feels like it has fallen apart.
This is a touching and inclusive story that is well suited for the 6-8 age bracket or for less confident readers in the upper primary years. Readers will find the story engaging and are likely to feel deeply empathetic towards Jake. The narrative sensitively explores the idea that Christmas is not an easy time for everybody, while also drawing out festive values of family, kindness and compassion for those in need.
***BOOK GIVEAWAY!***
Thanks to the publishers at Barrington Stoke, we have two copies of The Dog That Saved Christmas to give away to our followers!
To enter, simply follow @booksfortopics on Twitter and retweet the giveaway tweet by 11.59pm Thursday 6th December 2018 (T&Cs here).
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You can order The Dog That Saved Christmas online or from your local bookshop or library.
Many thanks to the publisher for sending us a review copy of this book and providing the giveaway prizes.
