Media Type:Audiobook
Genre(s):Children's
Animals
Narrator(s):Pete Cross
GM Hakim
ISBN:9781666676921
Publish Date:10/01/2024
Run Time:4 Hours, 48 Minutes
Language:English
Publisher:Dreamscape Media

Audiobook

“[Narrator] Pete Cross’s youthful timbre . . . contrasts with GM Hakim’s bass voice, which periodically comes into the narrative as he depicts Samarkand, a border collie . . . Clear in both narrations are the emotions of the dog and the boy, particularly their loneliness. Animal-loving middle-grade listeners will enjoy this audiobook.” —Audiofile Magazine

National Book Award winner Pete Hautman explores a friendship like no other—and the universal truth that dogs make life better, especially for underdogs.

Evan doesn’t seem to fit in at school or at home. He goes out of his way to avoid attention. He sits at the back of the bus, keeps his head down in class, and keeps to himself. But when a burr-covered border collie—a survivor with a gut instinct about the Boy—starts following him around and joining him on his runs, Evan’s simple duck-and-dodge existence becomes a lot more complicated… a lot more like life.

Evolving from wary companions to steadfast friends, Evan and the dog run fast and far together, thwart an abusive dog breeder and the school bully, and find the courage to stand up for themselves and open up to those who matter most. Narrated in alternating viewpoints, this relatable contemporary novel with classic coming-of-age themes has all the hope, pathos, and emotional complexity that mark Pete Hautman’s books for middle-grade readers—and is a deeply satisfying read for animal lovers.