From the Pups & Purrs Press comes this entry to the Pups & Purrs Series, From Wild to Mild by Sunny Weber. Middle-grade children’s (teachable moment) book just as delightful for adults who love animals.
Category: Middle-Grade Fiction (Ages 8-12), 196 pages
Genre: Animals/pets
Publisher: Pups & Purrs Press
Release date: August 23, 2019
Eight-week-old Australian Shepherd Kaya is kidnapped by a nasty coyote to be food for his mate and puppies. Instead, the loving mother raises Kaya with her own pups. But as hard as she tries, Kaya can’t completely fit in—she can’t kill prey or stay awake for night hunts.
Why can’t she make herself a true coyote? Constantly criticized by her coyote father,
how to contribute through teamwork with her brother and sister.
So glad I was introduced to this book as it is one that grips very quickly with the abduction of an eight-week-old pup by a nasty coyote, Maka. The protagonist and POV is an Australian Shepherd, adorable, but confused by his introduction to the den, scared that she’d become dinner for Taina and the coyote pups, Gopher and Flower, who would become his adopted sister and brother. Taina gathered the strange little pup into the fold and loved, sheltered, and fed Kaya as her own.
But Maka was not so easily swayed by the puppy and found her difficult to teach. Kaya has a whole different set of instincts, circadian rhythms, and was often corrected when she didn’t fit the coyote criteria. Indeed, she’d rather sleep at night than hunt and discovered she would greatly prefer to coordinate hunting with her sister and brother so that she would not have to kill to eat making Maka increasingly short-tempered about sharing food she had not acquired herself.
It’s so easy to see so many common human conundrums in the storyline–that of the individual marching to her own drum–hearing the music the others didn’t hear–not appreciated for her own gifts that didn’t conform to the norm.
Perfect for those teachable moments with children old enough to grasp the nuances! If shared with an adult, so much the better, but definitely open to thoughtful discussion whether child or adult.
As with a human child, Kaya would find it necessary to rebel. She began to observe the canine/human connections with the local townspeople. They looked to be happy. The dogs obviously were well-loved, cared for, performed their jobs seriously and were rewarded for effort. The problem was in the conversion from wild back to mild–that of a dog integrated into a human pack. It took love and patience.
But then Maka is not through. His territory, his rules, and the conflict between protecting Kaya’s new family and her coyote family must be resolved–one way or the other.
This beautifully illustrated novel is well written, well-plotted, with fully developed human as well as canine personalities. (I loved the little goat!) The story is engaging from the beginning, fast-paced, with a very satisfying conclusion sure to elicit a few tears with happy smiles. Short and very sweet, this is a must-read for anyone who enjoys a literary animal adventure.
This blog tour is being combined with two additional books in the series, Hurricane Dog: A Tale of Betrayal, Redemption and Change, and The Dog at the Gate: How a Throw-Away Dog Becomes Special. Click on the participating links below to check out all three books!
About the Author: Sunny Weber has over 25 years of experience in animal welfare advocacy. She is a professional humane educator and believes compelling storytelling reflects her passion for seeing the world through the eyes of the animals she teaches about.
Real stories are Sunny’s key to making deep impressions on young minds, for the future of animal welfare lies in sensitive people who will have the power to alter the negative impacts of previous generations and bring about positive change for all inhabitants of our planet.
Sunny has developed educational programs regarding compassion, respect, and care of domestic and wild animals. She writes extensively on animal issues in fiction, non-fiction, and blogs.
Sunny lives in Colorado with dogs and cats. Their yard is a Certified
Backyard Habitat for birds, squirrels, rabbits, pollinators, and any
other creature with fur or feathers who wanders in.
Connect with the author: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ Linked-In
Book Tour Schedule:
Nov 11 – ROCKIN’ Book Reviews – book review From Wild to Mild / guest post / giveaway
Nov 12 – My Journey Back – book review The Dog at the Gate / giveaway
Nov 13 – Locks, Hooks, and Books – book review The Dog at the Gate / giveaway
Nov 13 – Blooming with Books – book review Hurricane Dog / giveaway
Nov 14 – Book Corner News and Reviews – book review of From Wild to Mild / giveaway
Nov 15 – Svetlana’s reads and views – book review From Wild to Mild
Nov 15 – Rosepoint Publishing – book review From Wild to Mild / giveaway
Nov 15 – Jypsylynn – book review The Dog at the Gate
Nov 18 – My Journey Back – book review Hurricane Dog / giveaway
Nov 18 – ROCKIN’ Book Reviews – book review Hurricane Dog / giveaway
Nov 19 – FUONLYKNEW – book review The Dog at the Gate / giveaway
Nov 19 – Blooming with Books – book review From Wild to Mild / guest post / giveaway
Nov 20 – Locks, Hooks, and Books – book review Hurricane Dog / giveaway
Nov 20 – ROCKIN’ Book Reviews – book review The Dog at the Gate / giveaway
Nov 21 – Book Corner News and Reviews – book review of The Dog at the Gate / giveaway
Nov 21 – Svetlana’s reads and views – book review Hurricane Dog
Nov 21 – Books for Books – book review The Dog at the Gate
Nov 22 – Jypsylynn – book review of Hurricane Dog
Nov 22 – FUONLYKNEW – book review of Hurricane Dog / giveaway
Nov 25 – Book Corner News and Reviews – book review of Hurricane Dog / giveaway
Nov 25 – Blooming with Books – book review The Dog at the Gate / giveaway
Nov 26 – FUONLYKNEW – book review of From Wild to Mild / giveaway
Nov 26 – Books for Books – book review Hurricane Dog
Nov 27 – Locks, Hooks, and Books – book review From Wild to Mild / giveaway
Nov 27 – Svetlana’s reads and views – book review The Dog at the Gate
Nov 28 – My Journey Back – book review From Wild to Mild / giveaway
Nov 29 – Jypsylynn – book review of From Wild to Mild
Dec 2 – Books for Books – book review From Wild to Mild
Dec 2 – Mystery Suspense Reviews – book review of From Wild to Mild
Enter the Giveaway:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Thank you to Lauren at iRead Book Tours for the digital download of this book for a read and review. I really appreciated the opportunity to read this lovely book and heartily recommend to any that enjoys animal adventure books.
The Author: For most of her writing career, 
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Rosepoint Publishing 
