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Summary
Summary
A World War I canine hero saves the day in this action-packed, heartwarming story.
When the British military asks for dogs to help the war effort, Darling's family reluctantly sends her to be trained as a mercy dog. Through gunfire and poisonous gases, it's Darling's job to find injured soldiers on the battlefield and fetch help from the medics. After saving the lives of numerous soldiers, Darling suddenly finds herself in need of rescue. Will she ever make it back to England?
This wartime adventure is a touching and exciting introduction to World War I. Darling's story of bravery and devotion reminds readers that dogs can be so much more than pets.
The Dog Chronicles series features fast-paced, fascinating historical fiction about working dogs, perfect for readers who love books
Author Notes
When Alison Hart was seven years old, she wrote, illustrated, and self-published a book called The Wild Dog. Since then, she's authored more than sixty books for young readers. A former teacher, she lives in Virginia.
Michael G. Montgomery attended Georgia Southern University and the University of Georgia and has created illustrations for magazines, books, newspapers, and advertising. The illustrator of several books for children, he lives in Georgia.
Reviews (4)
Publisher's Weekly Review
A rambunctious family pet becomes a vigilant Red Cross dog in this first book in Hart's Dog Chronicles. A herder by breed, Darling constantly runs away from her young owners, Robert and Katherine, and insists, "I didn't care about war and hard times" when the children's father ships out from England to France during WWI. The dog has a change of attitude after her family, unable to pay the increased dog tax, volunteers her for service in the British army. Though the dog doesn't actually perform a rescue mission until more than halfway through the novel, her descriptions of life on the Belgian front carry weight. Montgomery's soft pencil drawings reinforce the affection between Darling and her handlers, and back matter offers additional facts about WWI and military dogs. Ages 7-10. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
It's 1917 in Cosham, England, and a family's pet collie, Darling, becomes a Red Cross mercy dog, seeking out wounded soldiers in need. In tense first-person narration, Darling relates her journey from England to France as she goes from reluctant helper to WWI hero. Light sketches further evoke time and place. Appended historical background supplements the narrative. Reading list, websites. Bib. (c) Copyright 2014. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
Darling, the book's charming narrator, is an adventurous dog from a loving home in England. When WWI breaks out, the British army teaches her to be a mercy dog one who locates wounded soldiers on the battlefield regardless of danger: gunfire, bomb blasts, poison gas, uneven terrain, and barbed wire. Renamed War Dog 204, Darling takes the reader from her village, to the training ground, and into the trenches of war-torn Belgium. She relates the sights, sounds, smells, and fears associated with war while valiantly putting her life on the line. In the heat of the Battle of Messines Ridge, Darling is wounded but manages to save trapped soldiers. This chapter book offers an introduction to the Great War but focuses on the unsung heroes of the battlefield. Darling's tale is supplemented with interesting facts and background information about dogs and war, and this first book in the Dog Chronicles series will certainly delight young readers who love stories about their canine pals.--Fredriksen, Jeanne Copyright 2010 Booklist
Kirkus Review
Darling, a rambunctious family dog, is drafted to serve in the British Army during World War I. The dog's-eye view offers a unique look at the lives of both two-footed and four-footed soldiers fighting at the front. Darling, desperate to return home, looks for every opportunity to run away, but when she happens upon a wounded soldier, she also discovers her true calling as a "mercy dog," searching out soldiers in need. Other dogs in her regiment are trained as messengers, scouts or sentries. Dogs travel with their handlers through France and Belgium toward their ultimate destination: no man's land. Darling quickly learns the brutality of war, watching dogs and soldiers die on both sides of the battlefield. She notes that the hated Germans are barely older than the children she left behind at home. The simple narrative is detailed but never graphic. Specifics about weapons and geography often outpace a dog's understanding, but this break in narration is only occasionally distracting. While never shying away from the tragedies of battle, Darling's story focuses on bravery, sacrifice and devotion. Finely detailed pencil sketches and an afterword explaining the history behind the story are included. Wartime adventure with plenty of heart. (Historical fiction. 7-10)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
