Sad, The Dog

(Walker Books, 2015)

written by Sandy Fussell, illustrated by Tull Suwannakit

Tags: Picture books, Reading, Dogs
Here is the promised review on Sad, the Dog, (Walker Books, 2015) written by Sandy Fussell and illustrated by Tull Suwannakit. It is one of my favourite picture books that feature a dog. Read more or listen here.

This is my first picture book review, so I hope I don’t break any rules and conventions –and if I do –I hope you will read on anyway.

The Plot

The story is about a little dog that ends up as an unwanted Christmas present. While his owners look after his physical needs –they feed, bed and groom him– they don’t understand him, don’t love him and therefore don’t name him. So the dog calls himself Sad. When the owners move away, they leave him behind, hungry and confused. The next day, however, a family with a young boy moves in and the boy is delighted:

"Mum, you forgot to tell me our new home has a puppy. This is the best surprise ever."

The boy called Jack gains the puppy’s trust by being patient and caring. The dog feels understood and loved for the first time, and he appreciates the little and big things Jack does for him, like giving him a padded basket to sleep in, special treats for breakfast, and games they can play together. But best of all, he gives him a name and one that suits him much better than the old one: LUCKY.

Theme(s)

Sad, the Dog is a heart-warming story about loneliness and emotional neglect, about being unappreciated and misunderstood, and how this situation can turn around. It is about hope and the power of love.

The book tackles difficult topics, among them pet ownership. What happens to those unwanted Christmas or birthday gifts? (One in five Australians own a dog, so there are nearly 5 million dogs and, sadly, every year, tens of thousands of dogs get abandoned and worse).

The book’s strong story lines, themes and messages make it a great book to read with and for children ages 5-8 years.

Why I keep buying this book for my little and not so little friends? In Sad, the Dog the two elements of picture book storytelling come beautifully together. The two elements being a) the pictures and b) the words.

The Pictures

Sad, the Dog is a pretty book.

What I mean by that is that its cover has great appeal. As a visual person, I judge a book by its cover.
I know, I shouldn’t, but I do. Every. Single. Time.

When I go to a bookstore, I never go directly to any particular section (I like reading all sorts of books), even if I know what I want to get; instead I scan the place and let colours, fonts and imagery catch my eyes, before I even pick up a book and read the blurb.

I guess everyone has their own method in how they conquer the sheer volume of information and make a selection. If a cover doesn’t call out to me, I rarely get to hear what the inside of the book has to say. It’s a bit like buying new shoes or jeans –if you don’t like the look, why bother trying them on?

But back to Sad, the Dog and its pretty cover: On the front cover there is a tree, a dog, a huge grey sky and lots of fallen leaves. A single leaf is just about to land on the small dog’s head, who, sitting on a bed of fallen leaves, is looking out into a rain-heavy sky. He looks lonely. There is nothing on the horizon.

If you removed the title and names of the author and illustrator, the watercolour painting would carry the story of Sad, the Dog beautifully on its own. With a leaf-less, lifeless tree dominating more than half of the book, the dead leaves in colourful pastel tones don’t seem quite dead yet; so yes, it’s pretty, but it also is gloomy. Because the dog sits there all alone, you immediately wonder and want to find out why. All of this is captured in Suwannakit's cover.

On the back, the blurb reveals just enough to understand that the little dog is unloved, unwanted and – sad. This feeling is all consuming and he has become Sad, with a capital S, it’s no longer what he feels but who he is. There is an empty letterbox, a pigeon and a crow.
In some cultures, pigeons represent peace, faith and fidelity, while crows are often portrait as the bringer of bad news in a number of mythologies. Sad, looking on as they fly passed, doesn’t know what the future brings: good or bad news.

I also like the fact that Sad is neither pretty nor particularly cute. It helps staying focused on the message that he, like all dogs, needs to be loved and respected. The little short-legged, small eyed, overweight cross-bred of a dog is perfect.

Inside the book, Sandy Fussell weaves a clever pattern of contrasting ideas, which brings me to the second element of the picture book storytelling, which is done so well here:

The Words

The words tell the story by contrasting the viewpoints of owner/dog:

Sad the dog was very clever. He could sing wonderful songs.
“Stop that Yapping,” Mr Cripps boomed

and

He could read stories.
“Stop ripping up the newspaper,” Mr and Mrs Cripps yelled

Through juxtaposing views of the first owners vs the dog’s intentions, the text invites the reader to look at both sides of the coin, while the details such as the names carry further clues about their owners:

Sad, is the name of the neglected, unhappy dog, while Mr and Mrs Cripps, the unloving owners sound a little bit like ‘creeps’. And then there is Jack.

Jack, a common English name since the middle ages (so common in fact that it was often used in lieu of the terms ‘boy’ or ‘man’) means ‘God is gracious’. But a jack is also a tool that lifts heavy loads. The boy, Jack, lifts Sad’s heavy heart and the burden of being unhappy.

Ok. That last part may be me, getting carried away a bit. But I like the idea that names can add, ever so subtly, an extra layer of meaning.

Sad, the Dog is a beautifully told story, full of symbolism in pictures and words and I would recommend reading it aloud and in company. It inspires conversations about responsibilities to care for pets, about hope when all seems lost, and it is a book about friendship and finding a true home…

…I could go on, but maybe it’s for you to find all the little and big messages hidden in this book for yourself ?