Megan Moruzzi

Megan Moruzzi
Just a Dog
Michael Gerard Bauer
Realistic fiction
Holiday
135


1. I have just finished Just a dog by Michael Gerard Bauer. This book was very interesting. I really liked it but it took long time for me to get into it. I liked the fact that they were individual stories. Even though it took me a little while to get use to the book I ended up really liking it. I thought it was cool that they were individual stories because I have never read a book like that. The book was about a dog named Mr. Mosely and all about his life and the stories that made him. He seems like a really awesome dog. In the end the dog dies. It was really sad because I feel like I really got to know him, and it was sad to read that he died. In the end you find out that the little boy is writing down all of Mr. Mosely's stories so that he will always have them with him but you only find that out at the end. Also in the end the author goes into a lot of detail about what they did with Mr. Mosely after he died. He died from bone cancer. This means that at the end of his life he was not able to go up and down the stairs or run to get the paper or do all his usual activities. This was sad to see because you could almost feel the pain he was in. They also talked about how they told Corey that Mr. Mosely had past away- they showed him the dogs body- I don't think that this was an inappropriate way to tell Corey that Mr. Mosely had died because he just started crying right on the spot- this made me feel bad for Corey. I thought that they also made a mistake because when Corey started crying his dad said "stop acting like such a child", thats when his mom punched his dad very seriously and said "he was not just a dog".  This is how the book started off then Corey said "OK lets go back to the beginning". I liked this because it makes it feel like your really reading the stories first hand. Also at the end of the book Corey writes about the burial and how they put a lot of thought into what they said and that they took his bowel and clued it to a rock and used it as a grave.

2.  I thought that the book was alright. It was cool that the book went through the dogs whole life from when they got him as a puppy to when he died. I also liked that you got to experience some of the family turmoil. It made you understand the dogs living conditions we not always perfect even though every one in the family loved him very much. Even though I ended up liking the book it was very hard to get into and some of the stories didn't make much sense. In all of the stories it was never the dog doing something wrong it was always the humans doing something and that seemed a little unrealistic. It was never Mr. Mosely's fault. The fact that the stories are about a dog really pulls me into the story because I love dogs and this dog is very obedient and all he wants to do is please his "people". I also really like the characters in the book they are so kind to him, like when there was a thunder storm and they let him come in the house and lye under the bed and then Corey got all his blankets and went under the bed with him and "cozied up" I think this was very thoughtful of Corey and probably really made Mr. Mosely feel better. Also when Mr. Mosely got older and he was not able to go up the stairs Corey's dad carried him so that he didn't have to go though any more pain. Over all I think the book was fun to read but I was very slow at first.

3. It think that the biggest theme in this book is power of silence. I think that this is a huge theme in this book because Moe is the biggest character and he cant talk. He also communicates to his owners without saying anything and it is a huge part. When Corey's mom was pregnant Moe knew it before everyone else did. He stuck with her, and everyone thought that he was acting really weird. About a month later they found out that she was pregnant and then came to the conclusion that Moe new it all along. He also communicated that he hated this stuffed animal panther. He would get all scared when someone went to the cabinet that it was in and he would run away when they took it out. I think that this theme appears mostly in the characters. Also when Corey's dad and Uncle got in the fight Corey's dad didn't talk for about 2 weeks long. He was telling his whole family that he didn't want to be bothered and that he was really upset. This show that the theme power of silence is very consistent through out this whole novel.

4. My favorite character is Corey. Corey is the main character in the book and the one who is writing it (its a journal). I really like Corey because he is so kind and gentle throughout the whole book. He is kind to Mr. Mosey, his sisters, and his mom and dad. e is also very sensitive. whenever something happens to Mr. Mosey he is always very concerned and sometimes blames himself. One time Mr. Mosey got his lips stuck in a fishing hook and Corey kept calling him and he couldn't move because his lips were caught but he kept trying to but he would just cry. Corey blamed himself for Moe having to go to the vet because he kept calling him and giving him pain but it wasn't his fault that his lips got caught in the first place. He is also very caring- he stuck with Moe when he got hit by a car and tended to all of his needs. He also seemed to be the saddest one when Moe died. I also really like him because he was the one that taught Moe his super trick- being able to catch the news paper in his mouth while the delivery person goes bye. I also like Corey because he is very loyal to his family.

5. My least favorite character is Corey's dad. I really don't like his because he is very mean to his family the whole time they have Moe. Its strange to me because he is very nice and loyal to him before they get Moe but while they have him he doesn't treat them right. In the book he has a really hard time finding work and so he ends up having to go to an overnight job in a far away place that he can only come home on the weekends. While he is gone his brother comes to his house a lot and hangs out with his family just to make sure everything is ok with them and to lend them some money while they are in there hard financial times. He is also very loving to the kids and drive them where they need to go- He is just a helpful extra hand and good company. One day when Corey's dad was gone and "Uncle Cavin" was over, Corey's dad came home unexpectedly and he was in a very angry mood because he had just gotten laid off (fired) from his job. While Cavin was putting the sheets up to dry Corey's dad came up behind him and started beating him up and saying that he shouldn't be here because he's not the father- and that he didn't want his bloody money or anything to do with him. He also said that he didn't ever want to see him again. He beat him up really hard and there was blood everywhere. While Cavin was running away to get in his car and leave, Corey's mom and dad started to get in an argument about how he shouldn't not have done that and that he was only trying to help the family. Corey's dad said that if thats what she wanted he should have just married him. Thats what made me really hate him- he was so vicious to his family and never even apologized to his brother. He has a flaring temper that he cant control and it makes me really not trust him and a character.

6. Towards the end of the book I had a feeling that Mr. Mosley was going to die. I didn't expect that he was going to die of bone cancer though and it really made it hard to expect the fact that he was dead because there were no happy things that happened in between Moe getting cancer and him dying. The thing I really didn't expect was that the family was going to bond over the fact that he had died. I thought it would have made corey's dad even more angry but what ended up happening was when Corey's dad was in the garage alone Corey came over to him and sat down. They talked all about Moe's wonderful stories and how happy he made them. They were talking and laughing at the table in the garage so much that his mom and other sister came down and started talking about it to- thats where they got the idea about the journal. It also bonded his mom and dad and talking about Moe really started to form there relationship again. This is important because they really did not like each other before and didn't really talk. Even though it didn't make me like Corey's dad any more it made me fell good lthat they were acting like family again!!