Jake the Growling Dog Shares His Trail (Jake the Growling Dog Book 3) by Samantha Shannon – Review by Beth McKitrick

Jake the Growling Dog Shares His Trail by Samantha Shannon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was exactly what my kindergarten-age son needed. He has been struggling with fears and worries lately, and this book helps address these things beautifully. I really appreciated the notes at the end of the book for parents, as I was at a bit of a loss at how to help him handle these big feelings. I also appreciated the subtle representation for kids with disabilities – the character Tuck opened up a discussion with my son and allowed him to ask questions without the risk of being insensitive to a real person. We talked about why someone might be missing a limb, that it can happen to anybody, and that they can still play and do everything that he and I can, they just might have to do things a little differently and that’s okay. I thought the pictures were very cute and that the writing did a beautiful job of being descriptive while remaining simple enough that my son could read most of it, as well as being enjoyable and engaging with its easy flow and rhyming scheme. Plus, my son loves animal books, so it was able to keep his interest! We will definitely be looking at the other “Jake the Growling Dog” books after reading this one!

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