Betty is a widow on fixed income. She and her neighbor, Jack whose backyards adjoin are having a dispute. Christmas is coming soon and Betty is having a hard time getting into the Christmas spirit. A dirty, little, hungry dog appears in Betty's yard, she is not pleased. Soon after that Betty's granddaughter, Avery arrives having had a fight with her parents and asks to stay with Betty. Avery takes to the dog and bathes him and feeds him. Betty does not want the dog and secretly plans to drop him off at the animal shelter. The dog runs into Jack's yard and Avery befriends Jack. In the end, all three people are brought together all due to a little dog. ( )

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"Betty Kowalski isn't looking forward to the holidays. She just can't seem to find Christmas in her heart. There's church, of course. But who can she bake for these days? Her new neighbor just adds to the problem. He's doing home improvements that don't appear to be improving much of anything." From the back of the book

I couldn't resist picking this book up because the dog on the front was so cute and I really like Melody Carlson's stories. This one didn't disappoint. ( )

The picture I had of Ralph in my head didn't look anything like the dog on the book cover.

At first, I didn't realize Betty was a widow. I guess I misread the first church scene because to me, it made it sound like her husband was there with her. Betty seems a bit lonely and down. She's concerned that the new owner of a neighbor's house is changing it too.

Then a stray dog shows up, one whom Betty decides must belong to the new neighbor. Betty's twenty-something granddaughter (Avery) shows up too. Both of them open Betty's eyes to being more connected within her neighborhood. But there are a few bumps along the way.

I thought the story itself was kind of "fluff" but I was glad to see Avery bring her grandmother out of the rut she was in. I was glad to see Avery start being more mature as befits her twenty-something age and that instead of avoiding her mother and stepfather, she does take the initiative to call them when Betty asks. ( )