Love the Dog

Sep 7, 2013 by speakeasy | Reading

In 2001 Sharon Creech wrote a touching novel about a boy that despises poetry. The story is written in the form of a student journal and is poetic in nature. In the novel, we read about the transformation of the main character, Jack.

At the start of Love that Dog, it’s September and Jack thinks poetry is weird and just for girls. By the end of October, he gives his teacher permission to post one of his poems on the board, “but only if you don’t put my name on them.” By the first week of November, Jack realizes that his words “look nice typed up like that on blue paper on a yellow board.” He begins to enjoy playing with words and his thoughts on poetry start to shift. Jack finds encouragement as he sifts through poems he’s been assigned to read. His struggles with poetry subside, as he makes connections to the words of great poets like Robert Frost and Dean Meyers. (One of whom plays an important role at the book’s end.)

Throughout the journal, Jack talks about events of his daily life. The entries are very easy to read – the innocence, questions and discussions give you insight on the boy’s throught process. Using a strategy his teacher taught him, Jack recalls memories from his past to write about his yellow shelter dog. As a mother of two boys, and a “mother” to two shelter dogs, the journal entry from May 14th tugged at my heartstrings. He writes a poem called “My Sky”. The poem is beautifully written about his dog Sky and the devastating event that happened one night. He agrees to share his poem (this time he puts his name on it) but is concerned that it might make people sad and asks his teacher to have brownies nearby to cheer everyone up.

This book is a great story to share with 6th to 8th grade students, especially at the beginning of the school year when you might have children who think writing poetry is a huge undertaking. You might also want to share this book with a child who needs a reminder that their voice is important and their thoughts can be poetic. Be careful though, as this story does touch upon difficult subject matter (loss of a pet). If this novel sounds interesting to you, grab a copy and a coffee. You’ll be finished reading it by the time your cup is empty. Then you can decide if it’s the right book for your child.

In this story, Jack’s thoughts on poetry changed from the beginning to the end. He went from thinking poetry was boring and confusing to becoming a reader and writer of poetry. As we start a new school year, what are some ways in which you are hoping to transform from September to June?