Lost! A Dog Called Bear! by Wendy Orr

I love dog stories and I hadn't heard of the Rainbow Street Shelter series but I am so glad I recently stumbled upon this first title.  Lost! A Dog Called Bear! by Wendy Orr tugs at the readers heart, encourages the reader to hope for the characters, and is filled with literacy language that will make readers stop and think.  I was reading along, enjoying the literary language, and imaging the excitement my second grade readers as they figure out the intended literary language messages when something felt familiar to me.  I read the author blurb on the back and instantly knew why this book felt familiar.  Wendy Orr wrote Nim's Island, another favorite book of mine to read to third graders.  

Logan lives in the country on a farm and loves it all.  Riding in the back of a pickup truck with his dog Bear, racing the wind, and watching Bear chase sheep.  Things change for Logan when his parents decide to get a divorce and he moves to the city with his mom.  Bear comes with him but gets lost on the journey there when they stopped for a rest.  Hannah is another character in the story that parallels with Logan's and then they cross into each others.  A dog shelter is an important piece of the setting and I have to stop here so I don't give away too many important details.  I want you to read this one or find the dog loving student in your classroom to share it with.

Here are a few literary examples to give you a feel of the rich writing Wendy Orr shares with readers-

"Logan felt like the turkey's wishbone being pulled apart after Thanksgiving dinner."

"...a sparkle of hope flickered through his black thoughts."

"Suddenly, the grumpiness dissolved like a Popsicle on the sidewalk."

A friend asked me if this was a sad story when I sent a tweet out I had just finished it and it is not.