A pair of twins has a scary adventure with their new puppy.
Readers primed by the title to think this book will be about an abandoned puppy rescued through adoption will quickly readjust their expectations when they learn that cocker spaniel Cooper was purchased from a breeder and will then spend the next 80 pages wondering when the rescue might occur. Since these 80 pages are almost completely devoid of excitement, they will be forgiven their increasing skepticism. Alex and Becky, white 9-year-old twins, are exemplary pet owners. They take Cooper to obedience school, they refrain from leash walking Cooper till he’s 5 months old, they never take him off the leash outside the backyard. This tedious adherence to best practices extends to the rest of their lives: when they go on a beach vacation, they wear sunscreen, wait after they’ve eaten before swimming, and stay in the shallows. “Careful” and “carefully” are their watchwords. The only thing these two goody-goodies do that’s even slightly interesting is bicker, which is how they happen to drop the leash next to a cliff edge, at last setting into motion the calamity that leads to the titular rescue—effected by the Coast Guard, because doing it themselves would, of course, be unsafe. Publishing simultaneously are Sammy the Shy Kitten, The Secret Kitten, and The Tiniest Puppy.
Thoroughly bloodless
. (Fiction. 7-10)