Cobweb

Morpurgo, Michael. Cobweb. London: HarperCollins Children’s Books, 2024.
The Napoleonic Wars ended on June 18, 1815 at the Battle of Waterloo. Thousands had died. But one French drummer boy survived. Scots Guardsman Matthew Clay, who kept a diary of his experiences on the battlefield, rescued him. Inspired by this history, Morpurgo’s tells the story of a drover’s dog leading cattle to market in London where he meets two soldiers and befriends a young French drummer boy. Beautifully illustrated by Michael Foreman and well-designed with widely-spaced lines of print, this inspiring novel is highly recommended for readers 8 years old and up. 

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Hachiko

Turner, Pamela S. Hachiko: The True Story of a Loyal Dog. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 2004.
Do animals feel emotions? Anyone who has ever lived with a dog knows that they feel many emotions: fear, joy, loneliness…. And of course, loyalty. This short story, presented as a picture book illustrated by the award-winning Yan Nascimbene, describes the history behind a statue at a famous Tokyo train station. While the main character – a young boy – has been invented, the story of Hachiko – a dog who for almost ten years faithfully went to the station every day, hoping to once again meet his master who had died – is true. This touching story set in the 1920s is appended with two pages of historical information and is recommended for dog lovers of all ages.

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