Module 7: Realistic Fiction -- No More Dead Dogs by Gordan Korman

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Book Summary:

Wallace Wallace is an accidental football hero, winning last year’s championship game. He does not seem like your typical football player he did not really even plan to win the game, it just happened. One thing really important to Wallace is honesty. He cannot tell a lie, even if it means the truth will get him it trouble. So when asked to complete an assignment writing a review of Old Shep My Pal, he tells it like it is. He hated the book and has a very good reason why. It is your typical “dog” book. As Wallace puts it if there is a dog and a medal on the cover of a book the dog is a goner. The teacher who requested this review is not happy with his brutal honest. He gives Wallace dentition making him  attend the rehearsals of Old Shep the play. Taking him away from the all important football team. Wallace while attending the rehearsals starts to take an interest in the play and the president of the drama club, Rachel. Wallace will choose the play over the football team, he will choose the new friendships and relationships he has made over the false heroism he has found on the football field. In the end Wallace revamps the whole play, saves the dog, gets the girl, and changes the book he hated into a play enjoyed by the entire student body.

APA Citation:

Korman, G. (2000). No more dead dogs. New York: Hyperion Books for Children.

Impressions:

This book had me rolling with laughter. It has some great truths, I agree if a dog book has a medal nine times out of ten the dog is not going to make it. I agree with Wallace Wallace in that I avoid books with dogs on the cover I cannot deal with the even possibility that the dog could not make it.  The element of humor made this book really enjoyable there was a good laugh at every turn. I really enjoyed how Wallace went against the grain choosing to be a part of  the play rather than on the football team. This plot point shows the reader that sometimes being an outsider in high school  can be more fun and more rewarding. The book is also written from multiple points of view giving a more rounded view of the story from all sides. The end of the book is absolutely fitting,sabotaged play and all. The play ends on an explosive note the play and everything in shambles. In a deus ex machina moment the book ends with everything working out. The play "Old Shep" ends up being a hit and Wallace gets the girl. This makes the plot feel less real, considering the book  is in the genre of realistic fiction. However, fact that this text is not a straight realistic fiction does not make less of a good read, in my mind it makes it even more entertaining. Overall this is a hilarious realistic fiction for the middle school age group. I highly recommend this read especially for reluctant male readers, the humor will definitely draw them in.  

Professional Review:

Gr. 5-7. Here's one for every reader weary of being assigned novels in which the dog dies. For expressing his true views of Old Shep, My Pal, eighth-grade football hero Wallace Wallace earns a detention that takes him off the team and plunks him down in the auditorium, where his almost equally stubborn English teacher is directing a theatrical version of--you guessed it. To the delight of some cast members, but the loud outrage of Drama Club President, Rachel Turner, Wallace Wallace makes a few suggestions to punch up the production; by the end, it's a rock musical and the (stuffed) pooch actually pulls through. At least, that's the plan. Briskly stirring in complications and snappy dialog, Korman adds mystery to the fun with an unknown saboteur, caps the wildly popular play with an explosive (literally) climax, and finishes with Rachel and Wallace Wallace finally realizing that they were made for each other. Except for Old Shep, everyone, even the teacher, comes out a winner. ((Reviewed October 1, 2001)) Copyright 2001 Booklist Reviews

Citation:

Peters, J. (2001). No More Dead Dogs. Booklist, 98(3), 319. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA79548265&v=2.1&u=txshracd2679&it=r&p=LitRC&sw=w&asid=d0e066f168151b4c9e4fa80828a15a3d

Library Uses:

I would use this book in a live audio book program where the book is read aloud twice a week for an hour until finished. While at this program teens can color, finish, homework or enjoy snacks. The humor in this book and lack of vulgar comments make it a great read aloud for most middle schoolers.