Learning about friendship and a dog agility class drives this new title.

Robyn spends school years with her mom and summers with Dad. Mom is always moving so it’s been a new school and being the new kid six times. Fifth grade brings Mom, Robyn, and her beloved two dogs, Sundae and Fudge to San Luis Obispo, CA.

Robyn doesn’t want any of her past failed starts to occur again so she creates a list of rules to follow at her new school. They revolve around blending in and staying away from trouble.

Mom has a different plan when she asks Robyn to get involved in an after-school activity. Instead of something her mom suggests, Robyn finds a dog agility class more to her liking.. She is immediately turned away by the trainer. One dog per person doesn’t work since Fudge is deaf and blind and always has Sundae by her side as a trusted companion.

Coming to the rescue is the instructor’s grandson, Nestor, who offers a deal. He’ll train the dogs if Robyn will tutor him in math. Nice plan but Robyn isn’t very good at math herself so she recruits a classmate to help. Soon enough more kids are involved and her plan to blend in is not working. Sticking to her rules has new challenges and she must adapt. Through it all she finds parallels to the dog training and her own life and begins to see people not by their cover, but by their full story.

The third person narration covers 24 chapters and 288 pages. I would have preferred a first person narration and a shorter length as it could have had a deeper emotional output. Nevertheless, NEW KIDS & UNDERDOGS has some good lessons about fitting in and being true to yourself. Best fit would be in a fourth or fifth grade classroom as the MC is 10 years old.

I’ve featured the author’s other two books, Suzie B. Won’t Back Down and We Could Be Heroes. Those are also worth your time, both with unique realistic plots.

FIVE MORE THINGS TO LIKE ABOUT NEW KIDS AND UNDERDOGS by Margaret Finnegan

1. The other students all have stories in their past and each are eventually revealed. The background on Nestor who had cancer, and Alejandra who always wears purple were two of the best.
2. Sometimes a parent is not the one who gives you healing type advice. In this case, it’s Robyn’s college age sitter, Nivien. Her wisdom has Robyn thinking about her plight differently.
3. The agility class for dogs was fascinating. It certainly is a lifesaver for both animal and owner. I never knew how much was involved in this undertaking.
4. MG books often have one parent missing.so it was nice to see both parents involved in Robyn’s life.
5. The problems Robyn faces in agreeing to new friendships will be familiar to young readers. They might just pick op a few pointers here about how to deal with a new setting.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Margaret Finnegan’s work has appeared in Salon, LA Times, FamilyFun and other publications. She is the author of the middle-grade novel, WE COULD BE HEROES (Atheneum Books for Young Readers)–NOW A JUNIOR LIBRARY GUILD SELECTION!

She lives in Southern California with her husband, two children, and her dog, Walt. She loves baking, soft-serve ice cream, and walking her dog.

(For much more about Margaret, be sure to visit her author web page)

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