The Dog Who Thought He Was Santa

by Bill Wallace

Christmas is quickly approaching and twelve-year-old Don Franklin should be excited, but something is wrong. Times are tough, and he's not sure his family will have enough money to spare to celebrate the way they always have. His dog, Frank, thinks worrying is a waste of time, especially when Don could be scratching his ears. And his little sister, Susan, is sure that Santa will bring the gift she wants, but she won't tell anyone what it is. Told in alternating voices by a boy and his dog, this homespun novel is Bill Wallace at his best.

Genres: Christmas, Fiction, Dogs, Childrens, Middle Grade, Animals, Holiday

224 pages, Hardcover

First published October 30, 2007

About the author

Bill Wallace was an American teacher and later an author of children's books. He started writing to quiet down his fourth grade students, who loved his stories and encouraged him to make “real” books.

Bill Wallace grew up in Oklahoma. Along with riding their horses, he and his friends enjoyed campouts and fishing trips. Toasting marshmallows, telling ghost stories to scare one another, and catching fish was always fun.

Bill Wallace has won numerous children's state awards and been awarded the Arrell Gibson Lifetime Achievement Award for Children's Literature from the Oklahoma Center for the Book.

Bill Wallace died from Lung cancer on January 30, 2012.

Former elementary school teacher; West Elementary School, Chickasha, OK, principal, since 1977, and physical education teacher. Speaker at schools and universities in various states, including State University of New York and University of South Florida.

AWARDS:

Bluebonnet Award from Texas Association of School Librarians and Children's Round Table and Sequoyah Children's Book Award from Oklahoma State Department of Education, both 1983, Central Missouri State University Award for Excellence in Children's Literature, 1984, and Nebraska Golden Sowers Award from Nebraska Library Association, 1985, all for A Dog Called Kitty; Central Missouri State University Award for Excellence in Children's Literature, 1984, and Pine Tree Book Award, 1985, both for Trapped in Death Cave.

Reviews

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute family Christmas read that take place in the 1950s. My son liked that the chapters alternated between Don, the boy and Frank, the dog.

**note**one of Frank's chapters is about how the parents wait till the kids go to bed than take presents out of the closet and put the by the tree, telling them they are from Santa.

[Hannah S. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was fairly good. I don't necessarily think that it was what the description claimed to be, but it was a cute book.

[Amy Webster-Bo · Rating 5 out of 5]

really good, done from a dogs point of view as well as the boys, cute how they did that

[Kyleduke · Rating 2 out of 5]

this book was okay did not see the point of it at all.

[Cece · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let me start by saying that my mother bought me this book when I was around ten years old. I'm an adult at this point, and I have held onto the book all these years, feeling guilty for never getting around to reading it. This holiday season, I finally made myself give this cute little novel a chance. Bill Wallace writes for a child/tween audience; I certainly appreciated his authorship at that age, and I do--probably more--today. I will shamelessly say that I loved reading this book. The writing is very digestible, but it is refined. Wallace knows how to write. His narration is fluent, entertaining, and downright adorable. He alternates chapters between a third person and the first person view of the bloodhound on the cover. I know, the idea of a narrating dog sounds like cringeworthy with a chance of "what the ___." It's good though, I promise. This happy little story about a family and their dog was what I needed to get the Christmas warm-'n'-fuzzies this year. If your brain needs a break from textbooks, dark and complex literature, or philosophy, give this one a go.

[The Book Nerd's Corner · Rating 2 out of 5]

A children's novel featuring a bloodhound who is getting into the holiday spirit this Christmas.

Christmas is almost here, and Don Franklin is a little worried about his father this holiday season. Things aren't going well with the mine that his dad works at, and he fears that there won't be enough money to spare for the usual presents. His little sister, Susan, is convinced that Santa will bring her exactly what she wants, but Don is worried that his parents won't be able to figure out what it is in time. Frank, the family's trusty bloodhound, may just be able to save the day.

I was hoping this was going to be a really sweet holiday read featuring a trusty doggo, but it was just eh. I mean, the dog really didn't feel all that central to the story, and half the chapters were in his point of view, for Pete's sake. The way that Frank was written seemed way too human for my liking, and it was rough to read a bunch of the time. And the way his sent works was just plain weird.

The Christmas vibes of this story were definitely trying to be there, but they were also pretty weird. I must say, the older brother Don was in on trying to figure out what Susan wanted from Santa pretty much the entire book and since this book is written for like eight-year-olds, I found this to be odd. I mean, believing in holiday magic is a common experience for most children, so it bothers me when book for small children burst that bubble. Also, the title is super misleading, because there is really no way that Frank thinks he is Santa.

The other thing I truly want to talk about is how poorly this book aged. It was published in 2007 and is set back a bit in time, but I still can't believe there was corporal punishment discussed in this book. Also, the working conditions of his father's mine are definitely very suspicious. I don't know the exact year this is set in, but I still don't see how it wouldn't have been better to write this story as a contemporary book.

Overall, "The Dog Who Thought He Was Santa" was a highly disappointing read. It didn't really deliver on the holiday vibes, I didn't feel that the dog's perspective was done well, and I really disliked the way that the whole Santa thing was addressed. I'm glad that it's over and that I can unhaul this book off my shelf.

[Monika · Rating 2 out of 5]

Raamatus kirjeldatud sündmused algavad 1957. aastal, vahetult enne jõule ja loo keskmes on neljaliikmeline pere (isa, ema, poeg Don (11a.), tütar Susan (6a.)). Jutustajaid on kaks, vaheldumisi kuuleme perepoeg Donilt ja koer Frankilt. Mõlemad tajuvad, et midagi on valesti, sest õhus on muret ja hirmu. Isa ja ema muretsevad raha pärast, sest jõulud on ukse ees ja kaevandust ähvardab sulgemine; Don on isa ohutuse pärast mures ning kõik neli kardavad, et kui nad ei suuda õigeaegselt välja selgitada, mida Susan Jõuluvanalt tahab, siis on lapse usk purunenud.
Ühelt poolt on tegemist toreda raamatuga, sest koer on hea jutustaja, kuid lõppkokkuvõttes see mulle pigem ei meeldinud. Näib, et kuna autor ise oli algklasside õpetaja, siis oli ta eesmärgiks edasi anda nii palju õpetussõnu kui vähegi võimalik. Näiteks parandab ema iga valet grammatilist konstruktsiooni. Raamatu stiilinäiteks sobib see stseen:

""I'm gonna kill her. I dont care if she is my sister," he muttered. "I love her, but I'm gonna kill her anyway. I'm gonna beat her to a pulp. Dad can kill me right back. It don't matter. I don't care if the sheriff comes and takes me to jail. I'm gonna-"
Suddenly realizing how stupid and childish he sounded, Don took a deep breath. He sucked the air in until he couldn't hold any more, then let it out slowly, counting to ten inside his head like Mom had told him to do when he got mad.
He'd said stuff like that before. things like he hated somebody, or he wanted to beat somebody to a pulp. mom and dad didn't like that kind of talk. He let his breath out slowly again and counted to ten a second time.
It was somewhat of a schock when Mom just glanced at him and very calmly said, "Don't kill your baby sister."
"Yeah," Dad added from the other side, without looking away from the TV. "something like that would really mess up our Christmas."" (lk. 95-96).

Jõulujutuna armas, sest kõik lõppeb hästi ja Susan saab oma soovitud kassipoja, kuid pole selline raamat, mis mu kodus olemas olema peaks ja teistele ei soovita samuti.

[Angel Gomez-Estrada · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Dog Who Thought He Was Santa by Bill Wallace is a good book that I would recommend to young readers. The book alternates between two perspectives, Frank the dog’s perspective and a narrator’s perspective. I did think that the title was a bit misleading though. Don and his family are worried for their dad who works in a mine mining coal. Don later finds out how dangerous his dad’s job is and doesn’t like it. But that isn’t the only problem in the family, Christmas time is coming around and Susan, the youngest person in the family won’t tell anybody but Santa what she really wants. Don and the family don’t want to tell her that Santa is really her parents though because they don’t want to leave her heart broken. Frank is understanding all of this and tries to help out by doing things his family thinks is weird and doesn’t really approve. Anyway, this is all I’m going to say because I don’t want spoil the story for you. Once again, I would recommend this book to young readers who like a good ending.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars, actually. I'm not usually big on animal-perspective stories (because I hate when we over-humanize an animal, even one that's telling a story to/for/about humans, honestly), but this came in a pack of holiday-themed books my kids bought, and I figured, why not give it a read? I was pleasantly surprised. The story is quiet--no back-breaking action or life-altering perspectives--but I think that's what made it such a nice little read. It's a very human story with loose ends and mistakes and small kindnesses that all pile together in a very satisfying way. I liked that Bill Wallace interlaced portions of the story from Frank (the hound)'s perspective with those from a "narrated" standpoint, because it allowed the story to move along in ways it wouldn't have been able to from his perspective alone. And Frank felt very hound-doggish for the most part (his game with the bone is perfection).

[Heidi_2811 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thus was such a sweet Christmas story. ♡

This is a story about Franklin's family. About mom and dad, Don and his little sister Susan, who is only six years old and Don's bloodhound Frank, who can smell a lot of what's going on.
Dad works at a mine that is in threat of closing, so mom and dad are worried about money, especially because Christmas is so close.
Don is worried about how dangerous dad's work is. And everyone is worried about what Susan really wants for Christmas, when she won't tell anyone but Santa what it is.
But Frank isn't worried about a thing. Because as he said it, "Worrying is the stupidest thing they do," but with his good nose, he tries to help around.

[Denise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fast Easy read - with a different twist to a Christmas tale. A family in the 1950's living off a mining job, with the stress of working underground for a living the air is not normal, the men where fighting to just work as things were or bring in safety teams - in the mean time a young girl is fighting her own battle of belief in Santa. Along the way the dog Fred, tell his life tale and mainly how life smells among humans.
The bond and love between family is strong right down to Fred's desire to bring Christmas to them.

Brings cheer and joy in a nice warped up Christmas tale gift.

[Zoe Petrella · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was a pretty good book, I read it just to read it. I found it on my shelf and decided to read it for fun. It was good enough that I finished the book but it wasn't a book that I couldn't put down. It also didn't have anything to do with a dog thinking he was santa... other then that it was okay.

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a nice quick read at bedtime. The dad works in the mines and the whole family worries about him being under ground. The father seems to be able to forecast the weather. It’s almost Christmas and the little girl in the Tory has not told anyone but Santa what she wants. Will the family be able to figure it out in time.

[Bardbooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

A thoughtful Christmas tale set in 1950s Oklahoma. After reading more about the author and discovering that many of his 30 books began as classroom stories that he wrote for his students, I liked the book even more.

[Twyla · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite part was when Susan got a kitten for Christmas, even though no one knew where it came from. I also liked when their dad got a new, better, and safer job. My least favorite part was when Susan almost didn't get what she really wanted for Christmas.

[London Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

another Bill Wallace book ive read. same as the last, there was nothing wrong with it. thinking back on it, its just very young, so im giving it a three star rating. i was just trying to read as many books on my shelf, and this happened to be a shorter one.

[Kate Lehenbauer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a heartwarming story set in 1950s Oklahoma. I loved the back and forth in POVs and the brother/sister relationship. I enjoyed all of the characters and think that students could really enjoy this book.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a sweet book. My son loved it, and the message was great, but I would warn parents that it gives a very strong suggestion that parents are Santa.

[Kiya · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think that the book was awesome!

[Austin · Rating 4 out of 5]

pretty good book. i liked it. i want my dog to be Santa.

[Olivia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I realy did not care for this book as some other books that I have read.

[Jeffery Worrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this book and the whole back round to it.

[Tisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet Christmas story about a family living in a coal mine town.

[Lexi Faith Carlson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute, Sappy, and has fishing. What more could you want?

[Sharon Buxton · Rating 4 out of 5]

B. fiction, children's fiction, grade 3

[Monica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun, cute, well-crafted. Old-fashioned, along with all the archaic gender expectations that go along with that.

[Bree Ann Swaner · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book to my SpEd class. It was cute, but it spoils Santa a little bit... I had to skip a few lines. It’s definitely an older book, but kinda fun.

[Vicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. A tale told about a family, as well as from the family dog’s point of view makes it a cute enjoyable read. Definitely one I could read again.

[alice.wonderland · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed it a lot!

[Marcela Gonzalez · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorites because *spoiler* the dog survives in this one!