Haatchi & Little B: Review

I love reading and animal stories, so I was thrilled when I was asked to review Haatchi & Little B: The Inspiring True Story of One Boy and His Dog by Wendy Holden.

The story begins with an engineer running over a young dog on the train tracks.  He calls his supervisors to alert them to the accident and to ask them to remove the dog as he thought it wouldn't have survived.  Fortunately the dog does survive and is rescued by the RSPCA.  The Andolian Shepherd loses one of his back legs, and as a result, faces some challenges in finding a forever home.  

Owen Howkins is the other main character in the book.  Owen was born with a rare and severe genetic condition known as Schwartz-Jampel Syndrome.  His parents, Kim and Will, met at and work for the RAF.  By 2008, taking care of Owen full-time takes its toll on the marriage, and Kim leaves.  Will diligently cares for his son Owen alone until he meets Colleen Drummond who loves animals.

She and Owen hit it off right away, and she nicknames him "Little Buddy," or "Little B," for short.  Colleen and Will notice how withdrawn Owen is and adopt a dog named Mr. Pixel to try to help him.  Owen doesn't connect with Mr. Pixel, though, so the couple ends up adopting another dog - the Andolian Shepherd rescued by the RSPCA.  They name him Haatchi.

Haatchi and Little B quickly become best friends and help each other through the challenges they each face in their lives.

I really loved this book.  It is amazing how one boy and one dog can impact not only each other's lives, but the lives of so many others as well.  I loved seeing how Owen comes out of his shell when his family adopts Haatchi.  As a disabled person myself, I really love seeing others with disabilities overcome their challenges.  I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves animals and inspirational stories.

FTC Disclosure: I received Haatchi & Little B: The Inspiring True Story of One Boy and His Dog free of charge to review.  This did not influence my opinions in any way.  All opinions expressed are 100% my own.