The Dogs of Winter by Bobbie Pyron - ESSENTIAL

 Pyron, Bobbie The Dogs of Winter, 320 pgs. Arthur A. Levine Books, 2012. 16.99 Language G; Mature Content PG: Violence PG  

When 5-year-old Mishka’s Babushka Ina dies and his mother is suddenly gone, the bad man takes him to The City. Mishka runs away and joins a gang of street kids who sleep in the train stations, steal and beg.  As winter approaches, the gangs become more violent, as do the police who try to rid the underground of the homeless children.  Mishka befriends a dog, Lucky, and his pack who let the small boy share their food and keep him warm.  Soon, he is known as Dog Boy.  These wild dogs protect him and he helps care for them and their puppies, but the people in the city want to send him to an orphanage.  

This beautifully written book is both sad and hopeful; a moving story about the plight of the homeless children in Moscow.  

EL, MS - ESSENTIAL Lisa Media Specialist