Dogs, eh?! They just don’t care. They jump straight into life all four feet at once, even if it’s a muddy pond with a duck in the middle at that moment. They don’t care about what’ll happen next week or even next minute, they just care about what’s under their nose right now, especially if it’s something deliciously stinky. And if it’s something really cheesily stinky they might even roll on it so they can wear the smell all day. Like perfume. Pwor. And they make friends and enemies as easy as pie. No how-do-you-dos or awkward conversations about whether they like the same films or cereal, just a quick sniff and they’re away! And have you noticed many dogs in a bad mood? Unless they’re hurt or tired or separated from who or what they want, they ALWAYS seem happy.
The boy in our story, Ben, is about as un-doglike as you could possibly be. He HATES yuck of any sort – hates getting his hands dirty or his trainers muddy, he’s terrified of treading in dog poo, eating unwashed fruit and getting verrucas from the floor at the swimming pool. He uses up loads of his energy worrying about stuff that never even happens. And he just can’t figure out how to make friends, which is a shame because he’s actually really nice underneath it all.
Then Ben meets Chatty, the hairiest, stinkiest dog in the universe. How in the world is that going to work out?!
Daniel Jamieson
