00012146

Charlotte is not a dog person. She doesn’t see why people adore dogs. At first she goes online she types on Saint Bernard’s and her dad is selling her dog so she is going to buy it to give to a rescue group. Review by AS

Eleven-year-old Charlotte is not a dog person but does not like that the rest of her family neglects their Saint Bernard puppy, and so with a lot of determination and a little sneakiness, she works on finding a good home for the gentle giant. ( )

Charlotte Hayes is twelve-years-old and is not a dog person. When her father brings home a Saint Bernard puppy she is not happy about having to care for it but after a short time she is the only one who will. Her father has a short attention span and is off to his next hobby, her mom is exhausted from caring for her baby brother and her older sister is boy crazy. Charlotte knows that Beauregard needs a home that will provide him with more love and constant care. He's a nice dog that shouldn't be chained up in the backyard next to his too small dog house. She comes up with a great plan that requires her to work hard and her friends to provide a bit of help. In the process of making this plan a reality she makes some discoveries about herself. She may just like this dog after all.

This may be a children's book but it has themes of friendship, loyalty and compassion that speak to everyone. I found it to be a sweet story with charming characters and an interesting plot. It's an easy read that is age appropriate and well written. As the story continued it drew me in. I found myself caring about this big, slobbery, gentle dog and cheering on Charlotte for coming to his rescue. And in the process of helping Beauregarde to have a happier life she helped others to improve their lives as well. I adored this book and could see it developed into a series. I would be so curious to see where this family and their friends go from here. ( )

Charlotte Hayes is an almost-twelve-year-old girl in Greater Oaks, West Virginia. She lives in a reasonably happy family with an older sister, a baby brother, and a big slobbery St. Bernard. Her father got the dog as a puppy, named him Killer, and then lost interest in him. Her dad has a good heart, but a short attention span. Charlotte’s mom has her hands full with her baby brother, and Charlotte’s sister is into boys. So there is no one to take care of Killer except Charlotte.

She renames the dog Beauregard, checks his food and water, pets him, cleans up after him, but doesn’t really want the job. Along with her friends Luanne and Grace she cooks up a scheme to find Beauregard a new home. She also gets real employment, helping to care for an elderly lady named Petunia.

In the process of carrying out her plans, she learns some lessons about judging people and about the value of honesty. But the best lesson she learns is that the most rewarding love comes from giving instead of taking, or, as John Lennon sang, “in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.”

There are happy endings for all, including Beauregard.

Charlotte has admirable qualities: she is compassionate and hard-working, yet she seems like a real girl. It’s not a difficult book, but the plot is involved enough to retain the interest of a pre-teen audience. ( )