Elise and the Second-hand Dog

Bought for an eight year old. Delightful book, full of humour, beautifully written and illustrated. I would easily recommend.

A finalist in the Book Trust In Other Words award for outstanding children’s literature in translation, this is a sweet story about a lonely girl who wants a dog. Her father is totally against the idea, but she wins him round in the most beguiling way. But they can only afford a second-hand dog so off they go to the man who will sell you anything, whether you want it or not. And he just happens to have a second-hand dog for sale – not much of a dog, looking more like a rabbit and smelling of cheese, but Elise loves him. Especially when she discovers that he can talk – in a Scottish accent. I won’t say I’m keen on talking dogs, but I do love this one, with his take on life and dry sense of humour. Laughs abound as they go off on their adventures together, mostly in their imagination. The book is beautifully written and illustrated. An all round treasure.

This is a really lovely immaginative story - My grandchildren will love it !!

I adored this book. It has a sassy main character, a plot with more twists than a dropped skein of wool and a modern European setting that comes alive on the page. And, of course, a second-hand dog that can talk, with Scottish slang. But is he real or just a figment of Elise's imagination? You'll have to read it to find out...