Book Description
for A Small Dog's Big Life by Irene Kelly
From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
In 1889, a stray dog drifted into the post office in Albany, New York. For the next eight years, Owney acted as a mascot of the U.S. Postal Service, traveling with mail bags by train through the country, and eventually sailing around the globe. His adventures were closely tracked by newspapers of the time, making Owney a popular canine worldwide. Based on her research at the National Postal Museum of the Smithsonian Institute, author Irene Kelly has recreated the story of Owney’s unique life, presented through invented letters, postcards, and newspaper articles. Watercolor illustrations depict a scruffy brown mutt gleefully living out his wanderlust, whether from the top of the Statue of Liberty or beside an Egyptian pyramid. (Ages 5–8)
CCBC Choices 2006 . © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2006. Used with permission.