What do you think?
Rate this book
Lost Gargoyle #1
(The Gargoyle in My Yard (Lost Gargoyle)) [By: Dowding, Philippa] [Apr, 2009]
What do you do when a 400-year-old gargoyle moves into your backyard? Especially when no one else but you knows he's ALIVE? Twelve-year-old Katherine Newberry can tell you all about life with a gargoyle. Hes naughty. He gets people into trouble. He howls at the moon, breaks statues and tramples flowers to bits, all the while making it look like you did it! He likes to throw apple cores and stick his tongue out at people when they aren't looking. How do you get rid of a gargoyle? Do they help the gargoyle leave for good? If you're like Katherine and her parents, after getting to know him, you might really want him to stay.
Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
2 people are currently reading
34 people want to read
About the author
Philippa Dowding
21 books68 followersPhilippa Dowding is an author, poet, and composer/musician based in Toronto. She is the winner of the Governor General's Literary Award, Young People's Literature, Text, and the Ruth & Sylvia Schwartz Children's Book Award, for her book FIREFLY.
Philippa was a writer early in life, and began writing poetry and short stories at age nine. She studied English Language & Literature at Western University in London, Ontario, and completed an M.A. in English at The University of Toronto. Soon after graduating, she began her professional writing life as a copywriter in the magazine and newspaper industry, where she won many industry awards.
When she had a family, she began telling bedtime stories to her children. One story, about a lost gargoyle living in a child's backyard in downtown Toronto, became her first published book in The Lost Gargoyle series.
Philippa has won literary nominations across Canada, the U.S. and Europe, including the Diamond Willow, Hackmatack, Silver Birch, Red Cedar and Red Maple awards. Her third book, The Gargoyle at the Gates, was named a White Raven Book by the International Youth Library in Munich.
NEW BOOK: The Love Song of Mr. Byrd is coming this fall!
Visit Philippa's website for more about her books, poetry, and music: http://pdowding.com/
Philippa was a writer early in life, and began writing poetry and short stories at age nine. She studied English Language & Literature at Western University in London, Ontario, and completed an M.A. in English at The University of Toronto. Soon after graduating, she began her professional writing life as a copywriter in the magazine and newspaper industry, where she won many industry awards.
When she had a family, she began telling bedtime stories to her children. One story, about a lost gargoyle living in a child's backyard in downtown Toronto, became her first published book in The Lost Gargoyle series.
Philippa has won literary nominations across Canada, the U.S. and Europe, including the Diamond Willow, Hackmatack, Silver Birch, Red Cedar and Red Maple awards. Her third book, The Gargoyle at the Gates, was named a White Raven Book by the International Youth Library in Munich.
NEW BOOK: The Love Song of Mr. Byrd is coming this fall!
Visit Philippa's website for more about her books, poetry, and music: http://pdowding.com/
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
August 10, 2015
Although this book is for an older reader, we read it to my 4 year old who loved the story. The entire series became standard bedtime reading for a few weeks as they easily captured her imagination. We also live in Toronto, so she was familiar with some of the places in the book, which was an added bonus!
March 3, 2014
The Gargoyle in My Yard is a short, clever read exploring the themes of friendship, loneliness, and compassion, as well as taking a dip into the issue of environmental change. When a 400 year-old gargoyle, Gargoth, comes to life and decides to make 12 year-old Katherine’s back yard his new home, both their lives will never be the same. The book is peppered with humourous moments such as when Gargoth protects Milly the cat from a dog, but also with poignant moments such as when he builds snow sculptures for Katherine’s family on Christmas Day and they all celebrate together. Even if this was a short, easy book to read (i.e., I read it in one sitting), I became emotionally attached to Gargoth as his back story is slowly revealed. The interplay between Katherine, who is impatient but compassionate, and Gargoth, who is both obstinate and endearing, was well done. Their relationship really grows throughout the story. Interestingly, this book also gave me much food for thought with regards to environmental issues. You can imagine the stark contrast for the gargoyle when comparing the world 400 years ago to today’s smoggy, noisy, busy, polluted cities.
I recommend this quirky well-written book to tweens who are looking for a quick fun read and who are fans of magical realism (i.e., Have you ever imagined that gargoyle in your back yard coming to life?). Ages 8 to 12.
** FOR THE RECORD: My 10 year-old daughter read all three of the books in the series and she gives them a big thumbs up! She LOVED them!! 5 STARS! **
* This book was provided to me by the publisher free-of-charge in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own. *
I recommend this quirky well-written book to tweens who are looking for a quick fun read and who are fans of magical realism (i.e., Have you ever imagined that gargoyle in your back yard coming to life?). Ages 8 to 12.
** FOR THE RECORD: My 10 year-old daughter read all three of the books in the series and she gives them a big thumbs up! She LOVED them!! 5 STARS! **
* This book was provided to me by the publisher free-of-charge in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own. *
May 21, 2014
Full review at http://thebookshelfgargoyle.wordpress... (June 6 2014)
Ten Second Synopsis:
Katherine is surprised to find her mother's gargoyle statue causing havoc in the backyard. She is even more surprised to find out that her mother knew all along. Now they must work together to curb the damage!
This is such a charming little book. Katherine is a sensible sort of a kid and I very much enjoyed the twist that got her parents involved in solving the problem of Gargoth. In fact it’s nice to see a book for kids of this age group in which the protagonist’s parents are (a) living and (b) useful! Gargoth himself undergoes some poignant character development also as we find out more about his back story and how he came to be stranded in the Newberry’s yard.
This would be a lovely serial read aloud before bed for kids aged seven to ten. Because the story is reasonably short and manageable, the book would also be a perfect choice for confident readers aged from around nine to twelve. The writing is laced with humour and the imagery is certainly chuckle-worthy at times. The book would definitely appeal to kids who are looking for a bit of magic and fantasy in their reading and a story that features a not-often-seen fantastical creature.
Ten Second Synopsis:
Katherine is surprised to find her mother's gargoyle statue causing havoc in the backyard. She is even more surprised to find out that her mother knew all along. Now they must work together to curb the damage!
This is such a charming little book. Katherine is a sensible sort of a kid and I very much enjoyed the twist that got her parents involved in solving the problem of Gargoth. In fact it’s nice to see a book for kids of this age group in which the protagonist’s parents are (a) living and (b) useful! Gargoth himself undergoes some poignant character development also as we find out more about his back story and how he came to be stranded in the Newberry’s yard.
This would be a lovely serial read aloud before bed for kids aged seven to ten. Because the story is reasonably short and manageable, the book would also be a perfect choice for confident readers aged from around nine to twelve. The writing is laced with humour and the imagery is certainly chuckle-worthy at times. The book would definitely appeal to kids who are looking for a bit of magic and fantasy in their reading and a story that features a not-often-seen fantastical creature.
April 30, 2014
Cute little story. I loved that it was set in Toronto. The characters were interesting. I wanted more, more details, some more depth. I feel like I didn't get a chance to know everyone well. Luckily, there are two more books in the story. I have the third - on a search for book two!
October 9, 2013
A great read! Totally entertaining, you'll fall in love with the characters. Quirky yet endearing. And there's history in it too!
February 12, 2021
Katherine catches their new garden statue dancing and promises to help search Toronto Queen St stores for his girl friend. Will Gargoth cause trouble like on Halloween protecting their house from costumes? He lived through witches, Plague, Pandemic, Mozart.
September 24, 2010
The first of a series for 8-12 year olds about a girl and a gargoyle that comes to life. Set in Toronto, Canada. An easy, fun read.
May 9, 2016
3.75 stars! Very good children's/juvenile book. Excellent writing, lovely characters and a fun story with an especially likeable gargoyle!
June 23, 2014
very fun and exciting, looking forward to reading the next ones:)
June 22, 2022
The gargoyle in Katherine's back yard doesn't fit in well with the other garden statues. They're all obviously sculptures; the gargoyle is alive. Also, it gets into fisticuffs with one of the dwarves, tramples Katherine's mom's award-winning asters, and generally acts rude. At first, Katherine worries about her parents finding out. Then she and her dad learn that her mom already knows, and the family takes steps to get to know the gargoyle better.
His name is Gargoth, and he's lived for over 400 years. Somehow, he arrived in Toronto in a crate with another living gargoyle, but the two were separated in a candle shop and he's desperate to find her again. Katherine agrees to help him in his search. But first, she and her family must adjust to having a little, winged creature in their garden that eats, drinks, talks and feels obligated to protect the family – even from trick-or-treaters. Keeping him secret puts a strain on the family, but it also has heartwarming rewards as Gargoth becomes almost part of the family.
Katherine, her parents, their cat Milly and the gargoyle in their garden share almost a year's worth of experiences in this brief, quickly read chapter book – experiences ranging from humorous to alarming, with stops at magical, mysterious and touching. How do you take a gargoyle to a piano lesson? What do you give a gargoyle for Christmas? How do you get rid of one, and what if you're not sure you want to? For all these questions and more, inquire within.
Philippa Dowding is the award-winning Canadian author of Firefly, Oculum and its upcoming sequel Oculum Echo, the "Nightflyers Handbook" series (The Strange Gift of Gwendolyn Golden and Everton Miles is Stranger Than Me), and the "Weird Stories Gone Wrong" stories (Jake and the Giant Hand and at least five more). This book also has at least a couple sequels: The Gargyole Overhead and The Gargoyle at the Gates. Maybe because it's from Canada, I had my best luck finding this book via online used booksellers; also, I'm afraid, well organized information about its author and her works is hard to find, even on her own website. Fantastic Fiction hasn't heard of her, and her Wiki page doesn't mention this series. Try Thriftbooks and/or Abebooks dot com.
His name is Gargoth, and he's lived for over 400 years. Somehow, he arrived in Toronto in a crate with another living gargoyle, but the two were separated in a candle shop and he's desperate to find her again. Katherine agrees to help him in his search. But first, she and her family must adjust to having a little, winged creature in their garden that eats, drinks, talks and feels obligated to protect the family – even from trick-or-treaters. Keeping him secret puts a strain on the family, but it also has heartwarming rewards as Gargoth becomes almost part of the family.
Katherine, her parents, their cat Milly and the gargoyle in their garden share almost a year's worth of experiences in this brief, quickly read chapter book – experiences ranging from humorous to alarming, with stops at magical, mysterious and touching. How do you take a gargoyle to a piano lesson? What do you give a gargoyle for Christmas? How do you get rid of one, and what if you're not sure you want to? For all these questions and more, inquire within.
Philippa Dowding is the award-winning Canadian author of Firefly, Oculum and its upcoming sequel Oculum Echo, the "Nightflyers Handbook" series (The Strange Gift of Gwendolyn Golden and Everton Miles is Stranger Than Me), and the "Weird Stories Gone Wrong" stories (Jake and the Giant Hand and at least five more). This book also has at least a couple sequels: The Gargyole Overhead and The Gargoyle at the Gates. Maybe because it's from Canada, I had my best luck finding this book via online used booksellers; also, I'm afraid, well organized information about its author and her works is hard to find, even on her own website. Fantastic Fiction hasn't heard of her, and her Wiki page doesn't mention this series. Try Thriftbooks and/or Abebooks dot com.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews