Genre: Middle Grade, Historical Fiction
Source: I purchased a copy to facilitate my review.
This is one of those books I have had on my school shelves for quite some time. A student read it and then asked “the question”, Have you read this book? Why no I had not gotten to it yet. So they recommend it be one I read over Spring Break. Unlike my students I grew up as a young teen during the Vietnam War. I had background knowledge they didn’t have. Dogs were used for scouting, to check out tunnels, find hidden enemies. Many of these dogs were left behind after the war.
Cracker is a dog who was paired with Rick, a young man who enlisted in the army. She had been a show dog, then the dog of a young boy who had to give her up. An ad in the newspaper is how she ended up in the army. When Rick is injured Cracker does her best to protect him. This is a story about a brave dog, a young man and his love and trust in this dog. There are some very tense moments in the book. This is definitely a book I want to pass on to my grandson Jacob. I think with some front loading of information about the Vietnam War, this will become one of his favorite books as well.
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