The Wizard's Dog
by Eric Kahn Gale
published by Crown Books for Young Readers
Meet Nosewise. He’s spunky. He’s curious. And he’s a dog who can’t understand why his pack mates Merlin and Morgana spend all day practicing magic tricks. If it’s a trick they want, he’s the dog to ask! He can already Sit!, Stay!, and Roll Over!
But there’s no way Nosewise is Stay!ing when his master and best friend, Merlin, is kidnapped. There’s nothing Nosewise won’t do to get Merlin back, even if it means facing the strange Fae people and their magic-eating worms, or tangling with the mysterious Sword in the Stone. But it may take more than sniffing out a spell to do it!
Nosewise’s hilarious escapades and steadfast loyalty get him and his companions through King Arthur’s Dark Ages.
And the trailer you don't want to miss:
My quick thoughts:
I watched the trailer before I read anything else about the book and this is one of those cases where the visual piece absolutely swayed my reading decision. I was definitely intrigued after watching it!
Knowing this was going to be about a dog that may or may not talk and it had a magical component, I knew this book would go over with readers. But would it deliver?
Yes! This book was fun from the moment I started it. The story is told to us by Nosewise, Merlin's dog, who just wants to be part of a family... and maybe know a little bit of magic. And magic he gets when he gets to wear the Asteria stone! When he has it on his body he can talk like a human and learn to do some magic. The trouble is keeping the stone once he's off on his adventure.
There were many familiar characters - Merlin, Morgana and Arthur, and although not a character, the infamous sword of Excalibur makes an appearance. There were a few other characters that may be familiar if you know even more about the Merlin stories. However, to understand the story, requires no previous knowledge of the characters.
What will touch the heart of readers is Nosewise's lovable character. His desire to have a family and protect those he loves will endear him to many readers. The parts I enjoyed most was when he had his voice and could speak to the readers.
Readers who enjoy non-stop action will enjoy this story. The first part of the story sets up the characters and the theme of the story. But once the conflict begins, it doesn't end until the resolution.
While there is definite completion to the story, I would love to see more of Nosewise and crew. Here's to more Nosewise and magic!
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