Melvin Burgess began to train as a journalist and has had jobs as diverse as bricklaying and silk-screen printing. An Enterprise Allowance Scheme gave him the chance to develop his writing, and his books for young people are now highly regarded. Melvin won the 1997 Guardian Award and the Carnegie Medal for his powerful novel, JUNK. He lives in Manchester.
A selfish, hedonistic 15-year-old gets turned into a dog by an alcoholic bum with magical powers. She savors the pleasures of dog life, until she remembers her family and tries to communicate with them. "This seductive volume is as raw and ravenous as its subject," wrote PW. Ages 12-up. (Aug.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
Gr 9-Up In this delightfully dark, funny novel, a rebellious 17-year-old taunts a homeless drunk who transforms her into "a scratty, hairy mongrel." Sandra tells her story in sparkling, lively, but often crude language. As a human, she ditches her crowd for more adventuresome friends, then gets into trouble for using drugs and having sex. Since her transformation takes place just pages into the story, however, most of her history comes in flashbacks. As a dog, she runs free, experiencing neither shame nor anxiety but glorying in the pleasures of chasing cats, devouring sausages, and (in fairly graphic detail) going into heat. At first, though, she returns home, only to have her family assume she's a mad dog and chase her away. She adopts the homeless man as her master and helps him beg for money. Sandra begins to revel in her new lifestyle, yet she matures enough to appreciate that her family and old friends loved her. But a last-ditch attempt to convince her family that she is their long-lost daughter ends in disaster. Finally, fed up with being judged and misunderstood, she chooses her life as a dog: "I want to be quick and fast and happy and then dead.- I don't want to be responsible." While this might not be the choice they would make for themselves, teens will identify with the narrator's sense of alienation and her defiant spirit. Some British terms may be baffling, but overall this is a quick, tremendously enjoyable read. -Miranda Doyle, San Francisco Public Library Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
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