On a summer day Mama and Papa stopped arguing, and Papa walked away. "Click," said four year old Elinor. William, headed to the fifth grade, felt tears well up in his eyes. This is the story of a family with a mother and two children who are having to accept that Papa has left them. Mama piles them all in the car and heads to the animal shelter where they adopt three dogs and a cat.
Written in large font that a precocious seven year old will have no problem reading, the story alternates between the voices of the animals and the story of the people. But magically, Elinor can hear the animals talk. She believes in magic. It won't take long before William finds his inner bravery and suddenly he can hear the animals talk too. Gran knows exactly what color sweater to knit for each dog because Gran has found the magic too.
The poignant moments, the magic of Elinor who is four and believes in wonderful things and the pain of William will capture your heart and amazingly find the way into places you didn't know you had deep inside. Patricia MacLachlan seems to know about our little niches of pain and loss and can touch those places with the best words at just the best time.
This is a story about a family that falls apart and comes together. This is a story about a father who is searching for something to help him write and perhaps searching for something he can't even define. But when he comes home he finds it waiting for him in large and small dogs and in the eyes of his son and in a wondrous phone call. This is a beautiful book about believing in the best in people and in the best in life's journey. Get your tissue ready now. 143 pages Ages 7-10
