Lulu and the Dog from the Sea

Starred review from March 1, 2013

K-Gr 3-Cousins Lulu and Mellie are best friends. In this modern-day, seaside adventure, the girls are vacationing with Lulu's parents and their beloved old dog, Sam. Having rented a cottage from a persnickety owner, the family hopes for the perfect week full of reading, kite-building, and marathon-training. However, a wayward stray bounds into their lives and turns their plans upside down (along with a few trash cans along the way). McKay hits the nail on the head in this beginning chapter book. Children will delight in the story of how this thieving menace turns into a brave hero and loyal friend, wiggling its way into the hearts of the characters and readers alike. This book is just right for youngsters ready for chapters, with cheerful black-and-white illustrations on almost every other page. Younger children will also enjoy this story as a read-aloud. The plot is universal and the vocabulary hints of a European setting. Family members sticking together to overcome obstacles is the prevalent theme and the happy ending is hoped for, if not expected. This title should be a staple in any early-chapter-book collection.-Amy Shepherd, St. Anne's Episcopal School, Middleton, DE

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 1, 2013
Lulu and Mellie, 7-year-old cousins and best friends, share a summer outing with lots of doggy goodness. The cottage by the sea is not exactly what Lulu's parents had envisioned--it is rather far from the beach, there are only two cups and two glasses, and the caretaker is grumpy and warns them about a stray, savage dog. The girls, however, are delighted, especially when Lulu, who loves animals, spots a very unkempt dog. Restaurant folk and the ice-cream-stand people know about the dog, too. Soon readers meet him, and they learn that he was born behind the Golden Lotus restaurant, that his mother and sisters were taken by the dogcatcher, and that he survives by stealing from picnics and garbage cans and by avoiding grown-ups. Lulu has brought Sam, her elderly dog, on vacation, too, but that does not stop her from finding ways of feeding and encouraging the stray "dog from the sea." When the kite that has been Mellie's vacation project leads the girls out at dawn and into some difficulty, it is the dog from the sea who overcomes his fear of adults and leads them to the lost and frightened girls. Thus, Lulu's menagerie grows as the vacation week ends, and two dogs come home. Whether they live with dogs or not, readers will absorb some truths about family vacations and the true care of animal companions in the company of Lulu and Mellie, who are as utterly charming and as completely age 7 as possible. (Fiction. 7-9)

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March 1, 2013
Grades 2-4 While Lulu, her parents, cousin Mellie, and Sam the dog are enjoying a vacation in a seaside cottage, the girls slowly befriend the dog from the sea, a lonely, energetic stray living in the dunes. Lulu's parents warn her that adopting him is not even slightly possible, but she continues to hope for exactly that, and inevitably, readers will too. Fresh as a sea breeze, the story shows McKay's sure hand in creating characters, both human and canine. A rewarding addition to the Lulu series of beginning chapter books. Appealing grayscale illustrations appear throughout the book.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)

March 1, 2013
Animal-lover Lulu and her best friend and cousin, Mellie, go on holiday with Lulu's family to stay at a cottage by the sea. This second appearance of the pair (Lulu and the Duck in the Park, rev. 9/12) allows readers more insight into the two girls and their friendship as well as a chance to know Lulu's distinctive family. The cottage's grumpy caretaker points out a dog running wild who's "not welcome around here." Them's fightin' words for Lulu, and she systematically goes about winning the dog's trust by feeding and petting him, caring for his neglected coat, and praising him. "Often she said Good dog' as she petted, and every time she said it the dog's tail beat with happiness." Clearly Lulu has plans to rescue this dog, knowing full well her parents' rule about pets: "The more the merrier! As long as Lulu cleans up after them!" Mellie's love of crafts and her attempt to make a kite become integral to the story as McKay tightly connects several subplots. Along with the novel's straight chronological order and abundance of natural dialogue, generous pen-and-ink illustrations show setting, characterization, and important action scenes, giving plenty of help for its audience of beginning chapter book readers. betty carter

(Copyright 2013 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

July 1, 2013
This second appearance of Lulu and her cousin Mellie (Lulu and the Duck in the Park) allows readers more insight into the girls and their friendship when they go on holiday with Lulu's family to a seaside cottage. Along with the novel's abundance of dialogue, pen-and-ink illustrations show setting, characterization, and important action scenes, giving plenty of help for beginning chapter book readers.

(Copyright 2013 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)