Dog Sense

By Sneed B. Collard III

Book Overview

Thirteen-year-old Guy tries to make the best of a difficult situation with the help of his beloved dog and a new friend.

Montana is a long way from California. Guy and his mother have moved in with his grandfather after his father's unannounced departure. Back home, Guy skateboarded, surfed, and played video games with his friends. Here the kids only seem to talk about cars, fishing, and hunting. Life at Big Sky Middle School is also a disappointment. Guy is bored in math class and over his head in English. He quickly becomes a target for Brad Mullen, class bully.

But at least Guy has his beloved Border collie, Streak, and eventually he makes friends with classmate Luke Grant. Soon Guy and Luke hatch a plan to train Streak to compete against Brad Mullen and his dog at the town's Frisbee catching competition. But the rivalry between Guy and Brad escalates until an impulsive wager pits the boys head to head and places Streak in jeopardy.

Sneed B. Collard III offers young readers an affecting, realistic portrait of an adolescent boy who must learn to cope with conflicts and challenges in an unfamiliar environment and to accept changes in his life that are beyond his control.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 156145351X
• ISBN13: 9781561453511
• Release Date: October 2005
• Publisher: Peachtree Publishers
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.3" x 8.9"
• Age Range: 8 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 3 to 7

Customer Reviews

brian's review

I liked the book, because it's about dogs. Every person in my family has a dog, except. me. I like playing catch with them and being around them. The story is about dogs that play Frisbee. The main characters are Guy Martinez and his dog Streak, Brad Mullen and his dog Shep. Guy has just moved from California and his Mom bought him a dog to get his mind off his Dad. They now live in Montana with his grandpa. Brad Mullen is a bully that has won the Frisbee contest two years in a row. He always comes in third in the finals. Brad always beats up Guy before and after school. Guy tries to make deals but Brad never listens. He finally agrees to, if Guy wins he stops bullying kids and if Brad wins he gets Streak. I would recommend this book to anyone that likes dogs. This book is funny but sometimes sad. Anyone that likes those kinds of books would like it too.

Alexandra C.

Have you ever bet something that was very important to you? If so, you can probably relate to Guy. He was very nervous that he would lose his precious border collie named Streak because of a very threatening bet. Dog Sense is a fictional novel by Sneed B. Collard III. Collard wrote many other books as well, like Flash Point and Shep: Our Most Loyal Dog. 13-year-old Guy was upset that he moved into his grandfather's house in Montana, since it was very different from California. Guy got a dog named Streak, and he was very intelligent and good at catching Frisbees. Guy did not realize this until he met a friend at school named Luke. Guy's new school in Montana is called Big Sky Middle School. On the first day at his new school, a bully named Brad Mullen crashed him against the brick wall and told Guy that he doesn't like Californians. He then met Luke, who helped Guy discover what a phenomenal frisbee dog Streak is when he played Frisbee with Streak one day after school. Luke makes a suggestion to Guy that he enters Streak in a Frisbee contest. Streak does one competition and then he is entered into another, as well as Brad Mullen's dog that wins almost every contest. But one day, Guy stands up to Brad and somehow ends up betting that if Streak loses, Brad gets to keep him. Luke and Guy are very nervous as they prepare and heavily train Streak for the big day. I recommend Dog Sense to people 8 and older that like happy endings and dogs. This book was full of competition and I wasn't able to put it down, especially when it was the day of the big contest. Even though the cover of this book seemed boring, I picked it out anyway. It turned out good, reminding me to never judge a book by its cover. Collard is a great author and I wish to read many more books by him.