Best YA Books To Read With Dogs In Them
Posted by Erik McManus on
Dogs are our favorite and we know that some of you out there are big readers so we wanted to put together a list of young adult books that have dogs in them either as a companion or a main part of the plot! Here are all the books we recommend and what they are about!
Elatsoe
Summary:
Imagine an America very similar to our own. It's got homework, best friends, and pistachio ice cream.
There are some differences. This America has been shaped dramatically by the magic, monsters, knowledge, and legends of its peoples, those Indigenous and those not. Some of these forces are charmingly everyday, like the ability to make an orb of light appear or travel across the world through rings of fungi. But other forces are less charming and should never see the light of day.
Elatsoe lives in this slightly stranger America. She can raise the ghosts of dead animals, a skill passed down through generations of her Lipan Apache family. Her beloved cousin has just been murdered in a town that wants no prying eyes. But she is going to do more than pry. The picture-perfect facade of Willowbee masks gruesome secrets, and she will rely on her wits, skills, and friends to tear off the mask and protect her family.
Goodreads link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49089632-elatsoe?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=egQjg8PJSM&rank=1
The Unexpected Everything
Summary:
Andie had it all planned out. When you are a politician’s daughter who’s pretty much raised yourself, you learn everything can be planned or spun, or both. Especially your future. Important internship? Check. Amazing friends? Check. Guys? Check (as long as we’re talking no more than three weeks).
But that was before the scandal. Before having to be in the same house with her dad. Before walking an insane number of dogs. That was before Clark and those few months that might change her whole life. Because here’s the thing—if everything’s planned out, you can never find the unexpected. And where’s the fun in that?
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17838528-the-unexpected-everything?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=tS6SXA7jxb&rank=1
The Phantom Tollbooth
Summary:
This beloved story -first published more than fifty years ago- introduces readers to Milo and his adventures in the Lands Beyond.
For Milo, everything’s a bore. When a tollbooth mysteriously appears in his room, he drives through only because he’s got nothing better to do. But on the other side, things seem different. Milo visits the Island of Conclusions (you get there by jumping), learns about time from a ticking watchdog named Tock, and even embarks on a quest to rescue Rhyme and Reason! Somewhere along the way, Milo realizes something astonishing. Life is far from dull. In fact, it’s exciting beyond his wildest dreams. . . .
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/378.The_Phantom_Tollbooth?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=aCAy4dAAYd&rank=1
The Call Of The Wild
Summary:
First published in 1903, The Call of the Wild is regarded as Jack London's masterpiece. Based on London's experiences as a gold prospector in the Canadian wilderness and his ideas about nature and the struggle for existence, The Call of the Wild is a tale about unbreakable spirit and the fight for survival in the frozen Alaskan Klondike.
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1852.The_Call_of_the_Wild?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=8SRji8QzYi&rank=1
Dog Ears
Summary:
I've got to tell someone, and you're the best listener there is. Mum is asleep with Jack upstairs, Dad's not here and Gran hasn't arrived yet - and you know what, Gran never listens anyway. Basically, the whole school has gone mad. Anna and her friends can't believe that popstar Pippa Green is coming to their school to judge a singing competition. They're going to be famous! But beneath her happy exterior, Anna is struggling. Her dad is working abroad and all her mum's time is taken up with worrying about ill baby Jack, so Anna is left to keep things together. The only person she can talk to isn't even a person; he's her dog, Sam. With so much to do, Anna is sure she's going to let everyone down. She starts to dream of running away, with best friend Sam at her side. But she'd never do anything crazy like that . . . would she? Anna's spent all her time worrying about everyone else - now they need to worry about Anna.
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25302915-dog-ears?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=CPWamxhi0N&rank=3
Bad Witch Burning
Summary:
Katrell doesn’t mind talking to the dead; she just wishes it made more money. Clients pay her to talk to their deceased loved ones, but it isn’t enough to support her unemployed mother and Mom’s deadbeat boyfriend-of-the-week. Things get worse, when a ghost warns her to stop the summonings or she’ll “burn everything down.” Katrell is willing to call them on their bluff, though. She has no choice. What do ghosts know about eating peanut butter for dinner?
However, when her next summoning accidentally raises someone from the dead, Katrell realizes that a live body is worth a lot more than a dead apparition. And, warning or not, she has no intention of letting this lucrative new business go.
But magic doesn’t come for free, and soon dark forces are closing in on Katrell. The further she goes, the more she risks the lives of not only herself, but those she loves. Katrell faces a choice: resign herself to poverty, or confront the darkness before it’s too late.
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/50028605-bad-witch-burning?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=uSAcumauF6&rank=1
Goblin
Summary:
A young, headstrong goblin embarks on a wild journey of danger, loss, self-discovery, and sacrifice in this new graphic novel adventure.
One fateful night a sinister human warrior raids the home of the young goblin Rikt and leaves him orphaned. Angry and alone, Rikt vows to avenge the death of his parents and seeks a way to destroy the man who did this. He finds aid from unlikely allies throughout his journey and learns of a secret power hidden in the heart of the First Tree. Will Rikt survive the trials that await him on his perilous journey to the First Tree? And is Rikt truly prepared for what he may find there?
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55722939-goblin?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=65QZfffUjt&rank=3
What I Carry
Summary:
Growing up in foster care, Muir has lived in many houses. And if she's learned one thing, it is to Pack. Light.
Carry only what fits in a suitcase.
Toothbrush? Yes.
Socks? Yes.
Emotional attachment to friends? foster families? a boyfriend? Nope!
There's no room for any additional baggage.
Muir has just one year left before she ages out of the system. One year before she's free. One year to avoid anything--or anyone--that could get in her way.
Then she meets Francine. And Kira. And Sean.
And everything changes.
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45697191-what-i-carry?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=EfJxVnfuaI&rank=1
Charming As A Verb
Summary:
Henri “Halti” Haltiwanger can charm just about anyone. He is a star debater and popular student at the prestigious FATE academy, the dutiful first-generation Haitian son, and the trusted dog walker for his wealthy New York City neighbors. But his easy smiles mask a burning ambition to attend his dream college, Columbia University.
There is only one person who seems immune to Henri’s charms: his “intense” classmate and neighbor Corinne Troy. When she uncovers Henri’s less-than-honest dog-walking scheme, she blackmails him into helping her change her image at school. Henri agrees, seeing a potential upside for himself.
Soon what started as a mutual hustle turns into something more surprising than either of them ever bargained for. . . .
This is a sharply funny and insightful novel about the countless hustles we have to keep from doing the hardest thing: being ourselves.
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49867239-charming-as-a-verb?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=5R48iuOwrz&rank=1
Heartstopper
Summary:
Charlie, a highly-strung, openly gay over-thinker, and Nick, a cheerful, soft-hearted rugby player, meet at a British all-boys grammar school. Friendship blooms quickly, but could there be something more...?
Charlie Spring is in Year 10 at Truham Grammar School for Boys. The past year hasn't been too great, but at least he's not being bullied anymore. Nick Nelson is in Year 11 and on the school rugby team. He's heard a little about Charlie - the kid who was outed last year and bullied for a few months - but he's never had the opportunity to talk to him.
They quickly become friends, and soon Charlie is falling hard for Nick, even though he doesn't think he has a chance. But love works in surprising ways, and sometimes good things are waiting just around the corner...
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40495957-heartstopper?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=7yv6Wvp8aK&rank=1
And those are just some of the recommendations we have! Start out with these and see what you think! But don't worry. We will be back with lots more in the future. Let us know in the comments if you have any that you would recommend as well. Happy Friday!