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Fans of dog stories and the RMS Titanic, take note! This new entry in the Dog Diaries series--based on a true story--is narrated by a pampered Peke that survived the fateful voyage!

Sun Yat-Sen--aka Sunny--enjoys the finer things in life. Noble canine companion to globe-trotters Henry and Myra Harper, Sunny doesn't even like to walk, preferring instead to be carried! Sunny and the Harpers are traveling on the maiden voyage of the RMS Titanic--the biggest, finest ship in the world. So imagine Sunny's horror when he learns he must stay in the Titanic's kennel with eleven other dogs, not in the Harpers' luxurious stateroom! It's . . . unthinkable! But only four days into the voyage, Sunny learns the true meaning of tragedy when, hidden inside Myra's fur coat, he escapes the sinking ship in a lifeboat.

Based on a true story, with realistic black-and-white illustrations throughout and a fact-filled appendix that includes information about the RMS Titanic, Pekingese dogs, and more, this is historical fiction for middle graders who don't realize they like historical fiction!

160 pages, Paperback

First published July 23, 2019

18 people are currently reading
157 people want to read

About the author

Kate Klimo

56 books139 followers
Kate Klimo spent her early years amidst the cornfields of Iowa where the winters were prodigious. Often, when the snows flash-thawed in the spring, she would find her backyard filled with the flapping, resurrected bodies of fish her ice-fishing father had stored in the snowdrifts. Thus sprang into her young head the unshakable notion that, all winter long, fish escaped from the rivers and magically swum through the snow banks of Mount Vernon, Iowa.

When she moved to the little town of Sea Cliff, on Long Island Sound, she met her best friend Justine in the Stenson Memorial Library at the main desk, where they often checked out the same fantasy writers. Together, they read C.S. Lewis, E. Nesbit, Edward Eager, and George MacDonald and embarked on a tireless search for portals to magical worlds, extending from abandoned Victorian mansions to the decrepit local five-and-dime to the sandy cliffs sweeping down to the Sound.

With her propensity for magical thinking and long-standing love of fantasy, does it come as any surprise that Kate grew up to be in the book business? But after over 25 years of heading up Random House Children’s Books, with the publication of The Dragon in the Sock Drawer in March 2008, Kate began to ease over to the author’s side of the desk.

Now a full-time author, in addition to numerous one-off titles, she has written the middle-grade series The Dragon Keepers series and the Dog Diaries as well the Centauriad for young adults. Under the pen name Bonnie Worth, she has penned over a dozen books in the best-selling Cat in the Hat Learning Library. She lives in New Paltz, New York with her husband and two horses.

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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
174 reviews
August 12, 2021
I think the dog diaries books are so amazing and perfect for read aloud to my 2 sweet little brothers.
Profile Image for Jennifer Hunt.
Author 11 books203 followers
April 25, 2024
Held my boys’ attention and got them interested in the Titanic
Profile Image for Charissa.
582 reviews
January 22, 2020
Our family has enjoyed all of the Dog Diaries books we've read so far. The stories are engaging and the history that's woven through them is interesting and informative. We enjoy the beautiful drawings that serve to illustrate the books as well! The sinking of the Titanic is a tale that's always been close to my heart and Sunny's story allowed for further exploration and knowledge-gathering of the event as it was well researched. I had previously been unaware of the animals on board the Titanic and their experiences on board the ship and the effects on them in the time of, and the aftermath, of the sinking.
Profile Image for Aimée Reisert.
89 reviews
February 10, 2020
Read this to my 9 year old. Though he is a very strong reader I was glad I was reading it to him .... there were some common French words and other things that required a little explanation. We enjoyed the book - we had no idea there were dogs aboard the Titanic.
Profile Image for Vanessa.
439 reviews4 followers
April 27, 2024
I have really enjoyed the Dog Diaries stories. I didn’t know about dogs on the Titanic so it was interesting to learn about the situation for dogs on the ship. I also was surprised they weren’t allowed to stay with their owners. Fascinating!
Profile Image for sarah.
160 reviews6 followers
September 5, 2021
A cute book that won't take too long to read. A nice little refresher. :)
Profile Image for Katie Williams.
250 reviews4 followers
May 13, 2023
I love how Kate Klimo weaves historical events into kid friendly and kid engaging dog stories!! My daughter LOVES this series!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews