A Dog's Way Home

Mar 30, 2011 Alison rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: animals, adventure, best-of-year, contemporary-fiction, elementary-school, kid-friendly, middle-school, read-aloud, 2011, teacher-friendly, 5k

WHAT HAPPENS IN THE BOOK:

Abby and her Shetland sheepdog, Tam, spend hours every day practicing for agility training trials and simply enjoying one another’s company. That all changes the day Abby and her Mom have an accident on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Heading home to NC from a competition in Virginia, their pick-up truck travels headlong into a tree, sending Tam’s crate tumbling down a mountainside. Tam manages to free himself from the crate before he’s drowned in a mountain stream, but in the c...more WHAT HAPPENS IN THE BOOK:

Abby and her Shetland sheepdog, Tam, spend hours every day practicing for agility training trials and simply enjoying one another’s company. That all changes the day Abby and her Mom have an accident on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Heading home to NC from a competition in Virginia, their pick-up truck travels headlong into a tree, sending Tam’s crate tumbling down a mountainside. Tam manages to free himself from the crate before he’s drowned in a mountain stream, but in the course of that he’s carried far away from the accident scene – too far for anyone to find him.

What begins is a 400-mile journey for Tam, whose deep devotion to “his girl” finds him traveling for months through rough territory and many painful encounters with other animals, other people, and terrible winter weather. Abby, meanwhile, endures the hardships of a life with little family income, a father doggedly pursuing his musician dreams, a mother struggling to help all of them, a new house/school/town, and a terrible grief over the dog she lost – a dog she believes is still alive and trying to reach her.

The story alternates between Abby’s perspective (in the first person) and Tam’s (in the third), giving the reader a full picture of how both are trying desperately to find their way back to one another. While Abby wonders about Tam, she and her parents move to Nashville, where she is surprised to find a new friend in a seemingly rough-edged girl whose father is a wealthy and famous country music star. This diversion away from the central plot adds depth to the story and brings some nice friendship components to the plot. Meanwhile, Abby’s feelings of desperation and singular sense of purpose to find Tam are achingly believable.

WHAT I THOUGHT ABOUT IT:

I thought this book was wonderful. It’s engaging, heart-warming, moving and an absolute “must read” for young animal lovers. I was completely absorbed by the story and very much taken with Abby and Tam – both of whom are characters kids will relate to, like, and find themselves rooting for. I think this is one of the most kid-friendly books I’ve read all year, but it’s certain to please a LOT of adults too!

This book would be a terrific choice for book groups, and teachers will find numerous ways to use it in a classroom. Students could draw “story maps” like Abby does, plotting the book’s major events on a map, along with the dates when those events happened. They could plot Tam’s progress, too, calculate his speed of travel, and make predictions about when and where he’s likely to arrive next. Also on the topic of making predictions, kids will no doubt want to talk about how Abby and her grandmother both believe that they can “see” Tam via dreams or an ESP-like ability they refer to as “the Sight.” Agility training is another topic young readers will want to learn more about, and it’s a great topic to explore in the context of encouraging fitness – both for people and their pets. Homeschoolers will like learning that Abby (who is very bright) was homeschooled until just two years prior to the events in this story.

One more note: A similar construction (alternating perspectives, first & third person narration) and common themes (rural life, friendship between kids from different socio-economic groups) makes this book an interesting one to pair with Faith, Hope, and Ivy June by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor.
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Mar 19, 2013 Chrissy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: beehive-nominee, childrens-fiction

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Funny story about this book - While I was reading, I came to the part where Tam winds up at an animal shelter in North Carolina (FINALLY, right?) The shelter scans for his microchip and discovers that he belongs to Abby Whistler from Harmony Gap. At this point in the book, Abby has moved with her parents to Nashville, but her grandmother still lives in Harmony Gap so she ought to be able to get a message to Abby, right? Except in the very next chapter, we learn that Meemaw has chosen THAT week t...more Funny story about this book - While I was reading, I came to the part where Tam winds up at an animal shelter in North Carolina (FINALLY, right?) The shelter scans for his microchip and discovers that he belongs to Abby Whistler from Harmony Gap. At this point in the book, Abby has moved with her parents to Nashville, but her grandmother still lives in Harmony Gap so she ought to be able to get a message to Abby, right? Except in the very next chapter, we learn that Meemaw has chosen THAT week to pay a visit to Abby and her family in Nashville and consequently cannot answer her phone.

It was as this point that I actually yelled at Meemaw for going on vacation. And my roommate came running because she thought something was actually, legitimately wrong. But all I had to do was hold up the book I was reading and say "THIS BOOK!" and she understood perfectly (my roommate knows me so well).

So, yes - "A Dog's Way Home" - this book made me want to take a few days off and run home to see my dog (well, actually she's my parents' dog, but that creature has been a faithful companion through more than one evening in the ranch house by myself when I lived with my folks). I defy anyone who has owned a dog and loved it not to get emotional at this story. I actually had to read the last page before I started because I cannot handle books where the dog dies at the end - and I found out that Tam does live, so I could read the book. But that doesn't mean that there aren't some really scary moments for the little Sheltie. I did love how the chapters alternated between Abby's POV and Tam's POV - I don't know of many other books that do that (not having read "The Incredible Journey" or "Old Yeller" - I know, I'm a bad librarian).

There is more to this than Tam's adventure and Abby feeling separated from her friend - Abby has to learn how to move on with her life when she starts to accept that she may never see Tam again. I love how she reaches out to a new friend in her new home - and that friend turns out not to be such stuck-up snob. Plus this new friend, Cheyenne, is instrumental in finding Tam in the end, so who's happy that she befriended the social outcast?

This is a very enjoyable story and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves dogs or who loves stories about dogs.
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Jan 18, 2013 Stephanie A. rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: girl-protagonists, dogs, animals

In many ways, it read like a junior version of Lassie Come Home. If the book was all from Tam's POV, it would have been perfect, as he was a sweetheart of a pup and I loved reading about his adventures, even when they were hard to make myself keep reading.

Unfortunately, the other half was populated with stupid people: a girl with such atrocious grammar she should be embarrassed to talk, incredibly unlikable parents, and a vet who thinks that no, there's no reason to even check if this lost and...more

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Sep 29, 2012 Patricia Hruby Powell rated it 5 of 5 stars

“A Dog’s Way Home” by Bobbie Pyron (Katherine Tegen 2010) alternates the stories of spunky 6th grader, Abby, and Shetland Sheepdog, Tam, an agility champion.

Both the fact that this is a middle grade novel and by its name, you can be pretty much assured that things are going to turn out okay—that the lost Tam will find his way home. Otherwise I couldn’t bear to read it. Gone is the era of “Old Yeller” and Bambi’s mother being shot by a hunter. I appreciate the fact that nowadays we protect our yo...more “A Dog’s Way Home” by Bobbie Pyron (Katherine Tegen 2010) alternates the stories of spunky 6th grader, Abby, and Shetland Sheepdog, Tam, an agility champion.

Both the fact that this is a middle grade novel and by its name, you can be pretty much assured that things are going to turn out okay—that the lost Tam will find his way home. Otherwise I couldn’t bear to read it. Gone is the era of “Old Yeller” and Bambi’s mother being shot by a hunter. I appreciate the fact that nowadays we protect our young from…well…devastating outcomes.

That said, plenty goes wrong for both girl and dog. In fact, I can barely believe that the dog, always in pursuit of food, could survive attacks from the claws of a raccoon, then a bear, the quills of a porcupine, not to mention his traveling hundreds of miles through snowy mountains, but he does. I’m passionately rooting for him, turning those 324 pages fast as I’m able.

There’s plenty of sorrow—more than I anticipated—but it makes the story stronger. Throughout the day I read the book, one or both our dogs slept at my side. When the eagle swoops down on Tam, gouging him with her talons, to steal his rabbit dinner, my little hound twitched in her sleep. I might have been reading her the story. When the man hurls a bottle at Tam, my Lil groaned in her dream.

Abby’s belief in her dog, her instinct that he’s coming home to her moves us almost as strongly as Tam’s adventure. Her family must move from the North Carolina hills to follow her struggling country-singing father when he gets a contract to record in Nashville.

The final chapters alternate faster and faster, getting shorter and shorter—Abby, Tam, Abby, Tam, hurrying you along. You don’t care that it’s late at night and you should turn out the light. You read to the end and for days after you remember both Tam’s plight and Abby’s dedication to her dog. At the end I didn’t cry politely, but blubbered out of control. In gratitude and relief.

Tam is never anthropomorphized, but remains a dog through and through. Having just read “Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell and Know” by Alexandra Horowitz (Scribner 2009), I’m privy to the latest, abundant research on dogs. Author, Pyron, clearly is, too.

Patricia Hruby Powell (www.talesforallages.com) is a children’s book author, nationally touring speaker, dancer, storyteller, and librarian.
Abby’s belief in her dog, her instinct that he’s coming home to her moves us almost as strongly as Tam’s adventure. Her family must move from the North Carolina hills to follow her struggling country-singing father when he gets a contract to record in Nashville.
The final chapters alternate faster and faster, getting shorter and shorter—Abby, Tam, Abby, Tam, hurrying you along. You don’t care that it’s late at night and you should turn out the light. You read to the end and for days after you remember both Tam’s plight and Abby’s dedication to her dog. At the end I didn’t cry politely, but blubbered out of control. In gratitude and relief.
Tam is never anthropomorphized, but remains a dog through and through. Having just read “Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell and Know” by Alexandra Horowitz (Scribner 2009), I’m privy to the latest, abundant research on dogs. Author, Pyron, clearly is, too.

Patricia Hruby Powell (www.talesforallages.com) is a children’s book author, nationally touring speaker, dancer, storyteller, and librarian.
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Nov 05, 2011 Richie Partington rated it 5 of 5 stars

11 March 2011 A DOG'S WAY HOME by Bobbie Pyron, Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins, March 2011, 336p., ISBN: 978-0-06-198674-1

"And every stranger's face I see
Reminds me that I long to be
Homeward bound."
-- Paul Simon

"Mama slipped an arm around me and pulled me to her. 'I'm sorry, Abby. I know how much you loved him.
'"I twisted away from her. 'He might still be alive.
'"A look passed between Mama and Daddy.
"'He could have gotten out of the crate,' I said. 'Just because you didn't find him, that doesn'...more

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Oct 15, 2011 NebraskaIcebergs rated it 4 of 5 stars

When my signed hardcover copy of A Dog’s Way Home by Bobbie Pyron first arrived, I felt like a child at Christmas. Yet here’s the problem I soon faced as a reviewer: I was allowing my note-taking practice stand in the way of enjoying an awesome story. I love a book in which I can immerse myself and A Dog’s Way Home held potential for that kind of staying power due to it being over three hundred pages. Like its author, Bobbie Pyron, I also savor a good animal tale. A Dog’s Way Home even promised...more When my signed hardcover copy of A Dog’s Way Home by Bobbie Pyron first arrived, I felt like a child at Christmas. Yet here’s the problem I soon faced as a reviewer: I was allowing my note-taking practice stand in the way of enjoying an awesome story. I love a book in which I can immerse myself and A Dog’s Way Home held potential for that kind of staying power due to it being over three hundred pages. Like its author, Bobbie Pyron, I also savor a good animal tale. A Dog’s Way Home even promised to distinguish itself from other lost dog stories by being told through the alternating viewpoints of eleven-year-old Abby and of her sheltie Tam after they’re separated by a car accident. Because Pyron offers up the viewpoint of the pet owner and not just the lost dog, she also treats readers to complex relationships, emotional character growth, and probing themes. As the suspense heightened over whether or not Abbey and Tam would reunite, I took fewer notes and fewer notes. I love this new entry into the lost dog genre. So will you!

After writing several reviews, I’ve discovered that taking notes helps me remember important details of a book. Now I never open a book without having pencil and paper near. Yet this practice can backfire and leave me too quick to tally all of a book’s faults. For example, Pyron’s seemed to be trying to hard with her sentimental style to manipulate my emotions: “There is no more pitiful thing in the whole world….” Abby’s closest friend too often acted like a “fuddy duddy” instead of a thoughtful eleven-year-old. When Abby tries to find Tam, Olivia cautions her to be careful not to get her hopes up. Later, when Abby rebelled against leaving Virginia, Olivia tells her: “For heaven’s sake, of course, you need to go with them.” As Abby’s parents came up with every excuse imaginable for why they couldn’t help Abby search for Tam, I wondered if Bobbie Pyron actually wanted me to hate Abby’s parents; all of their excuses basically came down to time and money, which shouldn’t be a priority when searching for a missing pet. I also began to feel irritated that Tam was yelled at or shot at by practically every stranger he met for apparently looking like a fox. (Other readers also wondered about this detail, but shelties can apparently look like foxes: More Sheltie Fans.) After the family moves to Tennessee so that Abby’s father can become a country star, I even felt taken aback by some of Abby’s reactions: How small was her hometown that she didn’t know anything about lockers? How could a small-town girl suddenly find herself an academic star in a trendier and bigger school? Finally, when Abby denounces her new classmates’ obsessions with hair styles, cell phones, and dates, I wanted to denounce her as a snob.

Yet once I put aside my critic’s pen, I realized how much A Dog’s Way Home had wriggled into my heart. For example, I love Bobbie Pyron’s unusual expressions: “whole flock of crows rose in my stomach,” “sweet as coconut pie,” “low as a bug’s butt,” “like a puppy peeing on the carpet”. Her descriptions aren’t bad either! I understand why Abby loves her home state when I read that “the Virginia hills, all colors with their pretty fall leaves” were “humped and folded around us like one of Meemaw’s patchwork quilts,” And, later, I feel Tam’s fears during his wintry travels when he “tried to scramble to his feet, but the wet heavy snow held him fast. He was stuck, belly exposed.”

As for what else appealed to me, I savored every word about Tam and his coyote companion. When the coyote was five months old, a car hit her mother. When the coyote met Tam, she felt driven by a need for companionship. Initially, Tam didn’t share her drive; instead every breeze seemed to call him home to his girl. As his journey grew longer, he grew closer to the coyote. I felt equally enthralled by the relationship between Tam and Ivy. Upon one of Ivy’s daily walks along the fence line of her high pasture, this eighty-two-year-old widow discovered a matted and bloodied creature that looked like a fox. After carrying Tam to her home, Ivy nursed him through a story night, and then called the doctor. After Tam recovered, he joined Ivy during daily chores, but of course his heart was somewhere else.

Most of all, I admire the complex realities that are interwoven through the pages of this deceptively simple dog story. Like Bobbie Pyron, I grew up reading dog stories. Yet before hers, no dog story has made me wonder about the friendships forged by a lost dog on the road home. (Other readers had a similar reaction: Why I Write Part 2) So, while I admire the drive of both Abby and Tam to reunite, I also feel sad that the friendships with first his coyote friend and later Ivy had to end. Yet isn’t this how life is? Yes, Abby’s parents do put their jobs ahead of a search for Tam. Yet isn’t this how life has to be? Granted, her dad didn’t have to push forward with a music career that not only often took him on the road, but also took Abby farther away from the accident. Then again, he loved music as much as Abby loved her dog: it was his guiding star too. Yes, Abby does seem at times contradictory in what she knows and doesn’t know. For that matter, most of Pyron’s characters at times seemed endearing and other times annoying, but then again isn’t this how people really are? In the end, A Dog’s Way Home hit my heart hard, mostly because Pyron risked sticking to the truth of life’s messiness like too few books do.

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Oct 07, 2011 Book Twirps rated it 4 of 5 stars

Eleven-year-old Abby's best friend is her dog Tam. While driving home after a competition, they are involved in an accident which sends Abby to the hospital. Tam's crate is thrown from the vehicle and no one can locate him. Abby is sick with worry, but she knows Tam is out there somewhere and she has to find him. Tam is just as strong-willed as Abby and will fight against all odds to make it back home to Abby.

Ms. Pyron has written a beautiful story of friendship, hope and survival. As a child I...more

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Oct 06, 2011 Amanda Snow rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, middle-grade, review-copy

Originally published at www.apatchworkofbooks.com

11-year-old Abby and her dog, Tam, are best friends that do everything together. On a trip home from a competition with Tam, a car accident results in Abby being hospitalized and Tam's crate being thrown from their vehicle, landing somewhere in the woods by the side of the road. Abby is sick with worry and even more so when no one can find Tam.
Days turn into weeks and months and Abby doesn't give up hope. Tam, as determined as his person to make h...more

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Oct 01, 2011 Beverly rated it 5 of 5 stars

My thoughts: Holy wow! Where to start? I truly LOVED this book!

Bobbie Pyron is a gifted storyteller. This story is beautifully written.
The book itself is a reader's dream: the cover is wonderful, the print is easy to read with enough white space on the pages to be encouraging even though it's a "fat" book by a sixth graders point of view. The characters are realistic, the language is straight forward and easy to understand. The names aren't tricky or hard to pronounce, the storyline draws you...more My thoughts: Holy wow! Where to start? I truly LOVED this book!

Bobbie Pyron is a gifted storyteller. This story is beautifully written.
The book itself is a reader's dream: the cover is wonderful, the print is easy to read with enough white space on the pages to be encouraging even though it's a "fat" book by a sixth graders point of view. The characters are realistic, the language is straight forward and easy to understand. The names aren't tricky or hard to pronounce, the storyline draws you in from the first page, and it's fast paced enough to keep you turning the pages without ever getting lost.
I sat down with every intention of reading for a little while and then getting some things done before coming back to the book. That didn't happen. I sat down with Bobbie's book and was "in" after opening the cover. I didn't leave the couch or close the book until I turned the last page, with tears streaming down my cheeks.
I am a dog lover. I have two dogs of my own and two "grand"dogs. I fell in love with Tam and Abby on the first pages. The bond between a girl and her dog is an amazing thing and Bobbie Pyron has captured it's very essence on the pages of her story.
I enjoyed how the chapters alternated between Abby and Tam so we were able to get both perspectives throughout the book. I loved the similarities in the experiences that each had in their journey, such as Tam and Abby both making unlikely friends who played key roles in the final outcome. I found it intriguing that there was so much about "Home" and what that meant. Many of the characters were searching as hard as Tam was for what they felt "home" was.
The characters are fantastic. The author has carefully created incredibly memorable characters. She has made them believable, realistic and easy to relate to. She has developed them so vividly that I was able to easily see them in my mind as I read the words. Each one stands strong - with their ideas, values, and beliefs at the forefront of who they are. I found myself relating the characters to people in my own life that fit into those same roles. I can't say there is a single character in the story that I don't like. (aside from the trapper and the man with the rifle, okay - the few who show up once and are mean to the dog - I don't like them).
I enjoyed all them all so much that I find myself hard pressed to pick a favorite character. Usually this is easy for me when I read a book, but this time it was hard. I like Ian's "North Star" analogy, and I loved that later Meemaw explains that dreams change and sometimes wanting something for so long doesn't mean getting it is always the answer. I had tears in my eyes when Abby's mom told her she was her "North Star." I especially liked Olivia though. She seems wise beyond her years, reminding me of my sister. Two of my favorite parts of the book come from her.

(from page 32) Then she looked directly into my eyes. "My mom often said love creates miracles." And that was all Olivia had to say about that. And it was all I needed to hear.
(from page 125) ...My papa used to always say the earth only spins one way: forward.

The relationships between the characters are incredible. So much nuance and hidden meaning. There is a message in the book that comes through on almost every page, but isn't blatant. It leaves the reader to discover what it all means to them as an individual.
The story is one about a girl and her lost dog, but is in so many ways so much more than that. It is a story of hope, courage, fear, longing, believing, and love. It is a deep and touching story with more meaning than you would ever imagine by just looking at the cover, or even reading the blurb.
To be honest, while I would have readily handed it this to any of my students asking about a dog book, I would have told myself to add it to my reading stack and one day if I had time I would have read it. I am so very, very pleased that I was approached by Teddy Rose and asked to read and review A Dog's Way Home because if not, I would have missed out on an amazing and inspiring story.
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Apr 13, 2011 Sherry Ellis rated it 5 of 5 stars

A Dog's Way Home is a story about a dog named Tam and a girl named Abby. As the story begins, Abby and Tam are competing in an agility contest. Their special bond is apparent. They are the perfect team because of their deep love and understanding. As expected, they go on to win the competition. Life is good. On the way home, all of that changes. They are involved in a terrible crash in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Abby and her mom are badly hurt. And Tam - he and his crate fly out of the back of th...more

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Apr 06, 2011 Doret rated it 4 of 5 stars

11yr old Abby and her dog Tam are Dog Agility champions. After another win in Virginia, there's car accident on the way home to Harmony Gap, NC. Tam's cage which was in the back of the truck was thrown over during the accident. Now Abby is trying to find Tam and he's trying to find his way home. The chapters alternate between the two.

Once Tam was lost it was his story I was most interested in. One thing I loved about Tam, he wasn't an extraordinary or overly smart dog. He was simply a regular Sh...more

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May 02, 2011 Anne rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: newbery-2012

My 11-year old son (whose favorite genre is fantasy) LOVED this book, and predicts that it will win the Newbery. He has noticed that recent winners usually convey strong emotion, and this book does that well. I liked the alternating perspectives of girl and dog, and was drawn into the emotional worlds and dramas of both their lives. Both story lines developed unexpectedly strong and engaging supporting characters (Cheyenne and the coyote in particular). The Blue Ridge mountain setting is captiva...more

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Feb 05, 2013 Heidi rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013-beehive-nominee, 2013-book-challenge, audio, children-0-12, fiction, juv-6-12, adventure-survival, feel-good, tween-10-13

It's taken me forever to get around to this book, especially as it is written by my co-worker! I enjoyed discussing some of it with her right after I finished.

At the beginning, I was getting Incredible Journey similarities. So I laughed when that book was mentioned by Abby's friend. As the story progressed, however, the story definitely became its own. I especially liked that I was able to see with the dog's owner was going through. I loved seeing the family dynamic. I found it funny to have a c...more

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Dec 07, 2011 Heidi rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: newbery-contenders, survival, middle-grade-realistic, newbery-contenders-2012, middle-grade-animals-stories

I found myself really enjoying this book. I was afraid at first that it would be kind of slow, but it wasn't at all. At least, I didn't find it so. The story moves quickly from the time that Abby and Tam get separated. The alternating accounts (Abby and Tam) could have slowed the story down, but it didn't. I found myself anxious to find out what would happen next in the story. Tam's predicament tugged at my heartstrings and I found myself cheering him on in his struggle. There is one part of the...more

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$~^ω^~{Augusti}~^ω^~$

Apr 02, 2013 ~^ω^~{Augusti}~^ω^~ rated it 4 of 5 stars

Abby Whistler is traveling back from a dog show when a terrible accident occurs, and her dog, Tam, is thrown from the truck. Following Abby's recovery in the hospital, she and her parents visit the scene to have a look around, but they can't find her beloved Shetland sheepdog. Now that winter is approaching, the Blue Ridge Parkway will be closed, so it will be months before she can continue her search. As weeks and months slip by, Abby's family becomes doubtful that Tam is alive, but Abby doesn'...more

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Jul 31, 2012 Anna rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: middle-grades, elementary, recommended-for-chase

recommended for E510 @ Chase Academy

Yes, this is definitely a dog book, but I don't think you have to be a dog lover to enjoy this book. The two protagonists, 11 year old Abby, and her dog Tam are a little bit too noble for my taste, but on the other hand, if they weren't good, I wouldn't really have cared about either character, or their reunion. I like the fact that the dog's perilous journey is balanced with Abby's move from a small mountain town to Nashville. (Unfeeling) readers who are no...more

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Feb 10, 2013 Meg Allison rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: vermont-dcf-2012-13, middle-grade-fiction

Kids who love dog-books best will devour this, but others looking for a sweet, and sometimes scary, adventure story will be reeled in. Abby, a 6th grade girl from North Carolina and her sweet Sheltie Tam, are inseparable. Coming back from an agility contest, they are in a car crash along the Blue Ridge Highway. Disorientated and injured, Tam is separated from his family. Will he find his way home? With hundreds of miles of wilderness and danger between Tam and home, he starts on his trek, unawar...more

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Aug 31, 2012 Kerri rated it 3 of 5 stars

This book was the most traumatic, devastating book I have ever read! Now, just to put this in perspective, I am the owner of a wonderful Shetland Sheepdog and a total sap when it comes to dogs, but this was worse than any sad dog movie or book I have ever experienced. Author Bobbie Pyron cruelly plunges you right into the tragedy by page 8 and continues to break your heart piece by piece for FIFTY CHAPTERS! By the end of the book, when you think you have no tears left to cry, Pyron cruelly leave...more

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Jun 25, 2012 Stacy Ford rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: kennedy-2012, girl-protagonist, cre

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Mar 14, 2012 Karen Yingling rated it 3 of 5 stars

Abby and her mother are in a bad car accident on their way home from an Agility Championship meet with Abby's dog Tam. Both are banged up, and when they finally are able to search for Tam, they can't find him. When Abby's family has to move to be with her grandmother for a while, she is even more worried that they won't be able to get Tam back. Told in alternating chapters, this chronicles Tam's struggles in the wild and the kind people along the way who help, and Abby's struggles to fit in to h...more

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Oct 28, 2012 Alexa Mazur rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: mazuralexadigitalbookshelf

I really enjoyed this book. This book has to do with a girl named Abby and her sheepdog named Tam. At the beginning of the book, her dad talks to her about northern stars, and Abby feels like Tam is her "north star" because north stars are supposed to give life extra meaning, and Tam does that for Abby. Well, an accident separates Abby and Tam and they both start running into a lot of dangers! I really like this book because it shows determination for a dog and his owner to find each other, and...more

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Nov 08, 2011 McGuffy Morris rated it 5 of 5 stars

Bobbie Pyron knows dogs. She has several, volunteers with rescue, and as a librarian has read many good dog stories. Now she has written one especially for adolescents.

This story is set in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. This gives different perspectives and scenarios of both beauty and danger, to both a child and a dog.

Abby is a little girl. Tam is her very special Shetland Sheepdog. Abby is quite convinced that they are each other's "North Star". They are inseparable, until an accident tea...more

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Jan 01, 2012 Caitlin rated it 3 of 5 stars

As an animal lover and dog owner, I really enjoyed A Dog's Way Home. This heart warming novel is told from the perspective of two alternating characters-- eleven year old Abby and Tam--which I thought made this book interesting and cute. How many times do you hear the dog's point-of-view? Another great aspect of this book is that it’s so realistic. Tam sounds and acts like a real dog and Abby, despite missing her pal, has to move on with her life by doing everyday things like going to school. I...more

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Oct 23, 2011 Small Review rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemp, harper-collins, own, pages-300s, published-2011

Originally posted on Small Review

3.5 stars

There seems to be an endless supply of animal stories where the creature conquers great adversity to be reunited with the love of its human companion. A Dog's Way Home did not stand out in the genre for me, but it did warm my heart, which is exactly what a book like this should do.

Rocky start

A Dog's Way Home alternates chapters between Abby's first person narration and Tam's journey (narrated in the third person). At first I wondered why Abby's sections...more

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Mar 05, 2013 Susan P rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: audio-books, j-fiction

A good dog story that went on a bit too long. Abby and her mom are on their way back from a dog show when their truck runs off the road. Both of them are injured, and her dog Tam's crate is thrown off the truck and into the creek. By the time they can get back to look for him, Tam is gone. Not knowing if he is hurt or dead, Abby is determined to find him. Unfortunately however, Tam is gone and no one has seen him. For the next few months, she calls shelters and ranger stations, and pesters her p...more

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Jul 17, 2012 Leah Good rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: middle-grade, animals

Abbie and her Shetland Sheepdog, Tam, are best friends. They are on their way home from an agility event when Tam is thrown from the back of their truck. By the time Abby returns to look for him, Tam is gone. As months go by, Abby’s family moves and Tam continues his search for “his girl”. Will they every be reunited?

This is a wonderful story told in the tradition of Lassie, Come Home. A librarian friend of mine saved it for me, thinking I might enjoy it. She was right! If you like dogs this b...more

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Jan 23, 2011 Reader rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-read-january-2011, meh-reads

You may have to be a dog lover to appreciate this one. When Abby finds herself separated from her beloved Shetland sheepdog Tam, both girl and dog are determined to get back to one another. For Tam that means traveling an unheard of 400 miles back down south to his home. For Abby it means never giving up, even when it looks like the odds are dearly against Tam's favor. The writing is perfectly nice, if not particularly extraordinary. Abby's a hard character to like at the start, and Tam is put t...more

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Jun 25, 2011 Vicki rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: animal, contemporary, grade-4-6, j-animal, j-contemporary

Abby and her Shetland sheepdog, Tam, have a very special bond. They are so close that Tam can sense her every thought during their agility competitions, making them truly gifted competitors. On their way home from a successful win, the family is involved in a terrible accident that tears Abby and Tam apart, leaving them grieving and searching for each other. Abby never gives up the hope that she will find her beloved dog, while Tam struggles across hundreds of miles to find his way home. This is...more

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Jun 26, 2011 Stephanie Feldstein rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: animals, new-classics, middle-grade

A DOG'S WAY HOME is a classic dog book in the tradition of LASSIE COME HOME and THE INCREDIBLE JOURNEY. Fantastic voice, for both the girl and the dog.

Yes, there is a dog's point of view in this book. I tend to be a bit skeptical of books with a dog's point of view - I've read too many that are overly sentimental or that don't seem to know dogs. This book is neither of those things. Pyron clearly understands and appreciates dogs. She gets them as dogs, not as little children in fur coats, and p...more

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Feb 25, 2011 Sydney added it

This is my 11 year old daughter's new favorite book. Usually she'd rather draw than read, but she gobbled this one up in two days. Now I know why: the story is filled with action, drama, close calls, and all sort of adventures. Plus, there's a nice bit of school and family issues tossed into the mix. A wonderful cast of characters complement the main points of view: the dog making his way home & the girl determined not to give up on her beloved companion.

You'll need a few tissues, and you wo...more

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A Dog's Way Home

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