It's National Pet Month!



Muzzie the rescue dog having a snooze in his new home

This year, National Pet Month runs from the 1^st April to the 6^th May, so it’s well underway by now. It aims to encourage responsible pet ownership, draw attention to the work of pet care professional and companion animals, and raise money for pet charities. You can find our more on the official website, which also includes lesson plans and information for schools wishing to take part as well as some tips on getting a classroom pet.

 

We love our furry friends here at the library, so we thought we’d take this opportunity to highlight some of our recent new books which have dogs as their stars. (We’ve got nothing against other pets, but as it happens we’ve had a lot of books about dogs recently!) These are great for the kids and rather lovely for the grown-ups too!

Oh no George! by Chris Haughton

This fun picture book is about George, a pet dog who desperately tries to be good when his owner leaves him alone for the day, but is met by temptation at every turn! Will he manage to resist eating the cake and chasing the cat? Only one way to find out – read the book!

Black dog by Levi Pinfold

This beautiful picture book deals with themes of fear and perception. A big, black dog, which gets bigger as each family member spots him, appears outside a house one night. Only the littlest child is brave enough to go out and meet the beast. The illustrations are stunning and the story great for stimulating discussion with children. Wonderful!

A greyhound of a girl by Roddy Doyle

We have a few Roddy Doyle books in the library and they’re all to be recommended, but this is his most recent. The pets in this don’t feature very heavily, but it’s such a good one that we’ve snuck it in anyway! Don’t be put off that this is primarily aimed at children as there’s plenty for the more mature reader too! It centres round four generations of the same family – one dead, one dying and two living. It’s a beautifully told story about coming to terms with loss and the power of family. It will probably make you cry!

A dog called Homeless by Sarah Lean

Another weepy! This one centres on Cally, who’s trying to come to terms with the loss of her mum. She can’t help but feel that the mysterious Irish wolfhound she keeps seeing offers some link to her mother. Meanwhile, she struggles to fit in at school and makes friend with the boy downstairs, who is deaf and blind. This is really rather a gripping tale!

Sid and the Cwmhendy dog show by Tanya L. James

A lovely, fun one to end with! Sid is a good natured but mischievous Jack Russell, based on the author’s own dog. In this delightful story he’s been entered in a dog show and needs to stay clean and out of trouble. You’ve probably got a good idea of what happens, but it's very charmingly told!

Do any of these grab your fancy? Remember, as with all our books, once you’ve read them, you can give them a five star rating on our catalogue so other library users know how good or bad they are. (Strictly speaking, you can rate them without reading them, but we’d prefer you passed on an informed judgement!)