When the Going Gets Ruff

Roxbury Park Dog Club #2

by Daphne Maple, Annabelle Métayer (Illustrations)

What’s better than being best friends? Being best friends who volunteer together at the Roxbury Park Dog Shelter! With a focus on friendship, family, and cute canines, Roxbury Park Dog Club is perfect for tween readers who snap up books from series like Cupcake Diaries and Candy Apple, or for anyone who loves dogs.

This second book focuses on Sasha, who has always wanted a pet. There’s only one her mom doesn’t think she’s responsible enough. Sasha knows she can be forgetful sometimes, but after weeks of volunteering at the Roxbury Park Dog Shelter with her friends Kim and Taylor, she’s sure she can convince her mom she’s ready to take care of a pet. But then the newest dog in the girls’ after-school dog care program turns out to be too rambunctious to manage. How can Sasha prove she’s responsible if she can’t get one problem puppy under control?

Genres: Middle Grade

222 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 3, 2016

Reviews

[Sabina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Moc se mi to líbilo pro začínající čtenářky super knizka a taky pro ty co miluji psy

[Daniela Dudiňáková · Rating 4 out of 5]

Main character vibe

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 2 out of 5]

Imagine the Baby-sitters Club, only for pets, and you will have a good idea of what this new series is all about. Best friends Kim and Sasha and new girl Taylor are volunteers at a dog shelter that is struggling financially. In Mission Inpawsible, faced with the prospect of losing their beloved volunteer positions, the three girls brainstorm a way to keep the shelter open: a club where owners can pay to have their dogs play with other dogs in a canine "after-school" program. In When the Going Gets Ruff, their dog club takes in Sierra, a large, exuberant dog who is very difficult to control. I'd be shocked if these books are not directly inspired by the Baby-sitters Club, as the two series have so much in common. Both feature girls starting their own business due to the needs of an adult in their life (in the BSC, Kristy's mom, and in this case, the shelter owner). Both clubs also have a strong leader who has "great ideas" (Kristy in the BSC, and Kim here) as well as a notebook for logging details about their charges. As a child of the late 80s/early 90s and someone who is not crazy about animals, I much prefer the Baby-sitters Club, but I do see the appeal of these even if they are not my exact cup of tea. The Shelter Pet Squad series is better written, but these are written at a slightly higher reading level, and have more of an upper elementary sensibility, whereas most other pet shelter books out there right now are geared toward second and third grade.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good story, perfect for a older elementary / younger middle school student. There are simple lessons to be learned including problem solving and learning about responsibility. This is a book I will be passing on to a local elementary teacher for her class library.
I received this book in a goodbook give away; this did not affect my opinion.