April 1, 2020
Grades 3-5 After Hannah's family moves from Michigan to California, she must adjust to stares and make new friends. She finds welcome companionship next door, in the form of Poppy, a boisterous pit bull puppy. There is a catch, however. Poppy's elderly owner can only keep the energetic pup if it can be trained, so Hannah takes up the challenge. In a seamless fashion, Shotz brings together two different, yet similar, characters. The 12-year-old and the puppy are both intelligent but misunderstood, due in part to distinctive facial features: Hannah has a stark, port-wine stain birthmark on her face, while Poppy possesses a potentially menacing brown spot. As the plot develops, these commonalities drive their actions. Poppy wants to please, but her exuberance and high energy often lead to disastrous, but comic, consequences. Using dialogue, action, and apt descriptions, Shotz tells a great story while incorporating information about birthmarks and pit bulls. Themes of acceptance, understanding, and friendship, show how, despite their mistakes, Hannah and Poppy excel at helping people understand the misunderstood.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)