"Half of me was thinking, Georgina, you're in a bad fix and you got to do whatever it takes to get yourself out of it."
- Georgina (Chapter 2)
Barbara O'Connor's How to Steal a Dog starts out with a heart-wrenching portrayal of a young girl who lives in a car with her mom and younger brother. The main character, Georgina, struggles with being isolated from her peers, only one of whom knows about her family's situation. Her brother, Toby, isn't very good at hiding his emotions, frequently acting like a crybaby according to Georgina. Her mother is drowning under the stress of working two jobs while trying to find a place to live and raising two children on her own. In order to earn money for a new house/apartment, Georgina concocts a plan to steal a dog and collect the reward money.
O'Connor does a great job of introducing her characters and the main problem. The story immediately drew me in as I wanted to know what would happen and what problems Georgina would encounter in her quest to steal a dog. Despite the distressing content, there are moments of humor and lightheartedness such as Georgina writing her list of steps for stealing a dog or her annoyance with Toby, the typically obnoxious little sibling.
I think this would be a great read-aloud book. I'd want to stop frequently (maybe after every chapter or even in the middle of some) to discuss with my students. We could practice making predictions, thinking about the perspectives of different characters, and see how those perspectives change over the story. An interesting writing assignment would be to rewrite a scene from the viewpoint of a different character - even how Willy feels as he's being taken away from his home!
While Georgina is desperate to feel "normal," the truth is that there is no real "normal" home situation. All students come from unique backgrounds, even those with two parents and a white picket fence in front of their house. There are multiple parts in the story that could spark discussions about consequences and empathy.
Author's Perspective
I found the following video on the Scholastic website that features an interview with Barbara O'Connor.
This would also be interesting to share with students since she talks about her writing (and rewriting) process. I love how she says:
"Never be afraid to write something that you think is not very good. Go ahead and get it on the paper because you can fix it, but you can't fix what you haven't written."
I Wonder...
After reading the first eleven chapters, I have lots of questions about what's going to happen. Some of the things I wonder are:
- Is Georgina going to get caught?
- Toby doesn't seem very cunning. Will he ruin her plan?
- How does Willy feel?
- Why aren't there any reward signs?
- Since there has been one unanticipated problem already (how to feed Willy), what other obstacles are going to pop up?
- What role will Mr. White play in the rest of the story?
- What lessons will Georgina learn? Will she learn to use her powers for good and not evil??
Sources
Scholastic Inc. (n.d.). How to steal a dog book trailer. Retrieved from
https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/videos/teaching-content/how-steal-dog-book-trailer/
Melissa,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your post and the addition of the interview with the author. This would be a great addition to the instructional strategies of many read aloud books to help students gain perspective on the thought process of the author. I also found myself feeling sorry for poor Willie, being taken from a home and human he loves. I like your idea of rewriting a scene from another character's perspective! Nice work!
I like the questions you had at the end of your post. i found myself thinking similar ones. Mr. White really stuck out to me. I know it isn't easy but part of me thinks he should have tried to find out a little more information about Gerogina. If he could have known more of her situation he may have been able to help or at least point her to help. Just from the few days i have student taught, in my class i have already seen students act out or just sit and not want to do the work and i realize there are probably greater reasons that what is at the surface. Reading this makes me want to try to know as much as i can about each student so i can help them in the best ways possible.
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of having the students re-write a section of the book from another characters POV!! or even writing about others feelings (such as Willy's or Georgina's brother Toby). I like the extra resources you found as well! There are so many awesome pre-made resources out there that we should all take advantage of.
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