Do I think this is going to go down in history as the next best great children's book? No. Do I think young readers are going to enjoy the story while they're reading it? Yes. JR is a wonderful character. He's a small, simple dog with a good heart. The book's central themes of not judging based on appearances and learning what true friendship is about will hit home with young readers. They'll enjoy the mystery of the missing dogs and they'll love the characters that are introduced.

This isn't a complex book and it will easily be devoured by pre-teens since it's quite short and the language isn't too difficult. As far as I know, there aren't that many children's books based in Moscow, so I did find the setting to be original, even if the plot wasn't. It's a cute read with some very cool elements in it. I especially liked how the dogs had such human personalities. (Is it wrong I hope that our pets are really like that?)

Overall, I think it's a perfect book for younger readers and Delaney shows some real promise. ( )