The Dog Squad: The Newshound

This playful detective story for children is fun for any young readers who love mystery…and dogs!

Eva and her friends are budding journalists who enjoy nothing more than sniffing around for a juicy news story. Their school paper – The Newshound – is in need of some fresh material, though, with stories about recycling bins and missing gloves failing to sate the appetite of Eva and her two ambitious friends. A potentially exciting scoop arrives for them when Eva finds an abandoned puppy outside the shop. There’s just one problem…there’s no way Eva’s mum (or her landlord) is going to let her keep a puppy in the flat!

Eva names the dog Wafer, on account of his scrawny frame, and her team set about finding his owner. It’s a tough task as there are very few clues to work with and, secretly, Eva would much rather keep her new companion!

In many ways, Wafer embodies the spirit of The Newshound team. He’s constantly alert and nosing around for clues and he’s also utterly enthusiastic and positive…just like Eva and her friends – Simone and Ash. The three children are totally endearing: they are not the most popular children in school but they also have no designs on becoming so. They are not chasing ways to be cool or to stand out from the crowd. Instead, they just want to focus on spending time with their friends, writing their newspaper.

Like any good journalists, The Newshound team is resilient. They won’t stop until they have found Wafer’s owners, interviewing people who can help and putting up posters around the park.  The landlord’s urgent deadline to remove Wafer from the flat adds jeopardy to their hunt and, whilst searching for evidence, Eva also has to win the support of her mother – who already has a lot in her life to juggle.

The Dog Squad’s story is playful and positive. With the possible exception of a mildly curmudgeonly landlord, everyone is nice to each other. Readers won’t have to face the kind of school bully or unfair teacher characters that so often feature in books for this age-range. Instead, they can enjoy spending time with a kind, joyful set of children and their adorable new newshound!