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My Dog Is A Winner
By Elizabeth Fensham
Published by University of Queensland Press) UQP
ISBN 9780702262961
Ugly, yes, that is the dog's name, is part of the Bright family. He is big hairy sometimes smelly dog who loves friendship, helping and comforting people.
The reader meets Ugly and his owner, Eric, when Eric's grown up sister Gretchen, who is prone to being unhappy, moody is having one of her grumpy moments. There's also their parents and grandad who often shares words of wisdom with Eric.
Ugly doesn't like seeing people unhappy and tries to help Gretchen. Grandad says that when people are mean or grumpy it is usually because they are unhappy with their own lives so they snap back at others. Once Eric finds out what's eating his sister he sets to work on trying to help her. Ugly, meanwhile keeps trying to comfort her.
Such a loving dog Ugly goes to school with Eric and helps the other children, he really is a star companion. One day the principal announces that a new girl will be coming to the school. Her name is Maryam and she's a refugee who hardly speaks any English so they must be patient with her and welcome her to the school, which they do by preparing nice things for her. Ugly sees Maryam is very scared and so he also tries to help her. When Ugly is suddenly off his food and refuses to play, Eric must figure out what's bothering him
Oh and did I mention this super smart pooch tries to speak? Not quite speak as you, the reader and I speak but enough to be understood with a growing vocabulary..
This is a lovely story about friendship, compassion and how to be a real hero.
Elizabeth Fensham's first novel, Helicopter Man, won the 2006 CBCA Book of the Year for Younger Readers. It was followed by her young adult novels Miss McAllister's Ghost, a 2009 CBCA Notable Book for Older Readers, Goodbye Jamie Boyd, shortlisted for the 2009 Bologna Book Fair's White Ravens Award, and The Invisible Hero, winner of the 2012 Speech Pathology Book of the Year Award and listed as an IBBY Book.
Elizabeth's younger reader novels include Matty Forever, shortlisted for the 2009 CBCA Book of the Year for Younger Readers, and the companions, Bill Rules, shortlisted for the 2011 Queensland Premier's Literary Awards, and Matty and Bill for Keeps. The first of the My Dog series, My Dog Doesn't Like Me, was published in 2014 followed by the second, My Dog Gets a Job, in 2017. Elizabeth lives in Victoria's Dandenong Ranges.
