The one hope of Ginger, circus dog born and bred, is to find her own little girl. Meanwhile, she dutifully does her best and is tapped to make the high jump in a new clown act. In rehearsal, she panics: it's too far down, and snooty Prunella is chosen to take her place. But good luck rewards Ginger: Prunella stumbles; and, heating the tinkle of a child's laugh, Ginger recognizes her true friend-to-be in the new girl clown, climbs the high ladder, and jumps into her arms--and also, incidentally, into circus glory. Ernst's deftly drawn, seriocomic illustrations are reproduced in large format--which helps suit the rather long story to older picture-book groups--and are embellished with pleasing detail that rewards closer perusal. Special design kudos for the clever inclusion of the ""Commendably Concise Collection of Convenient Congressional Cataloging"" data as a circus poster incorporated in the title page spread. Good fun, well done.