The Book, “No More Dead Dogs”, is a book written by Gordon Korman. This Book was published on October 1st, 2002. The Genres for this book would be Comedy, and a little bit of Drama. Wallace Wallace is a school football here that has been suspended from the team because he will not write a book review. The review was for the book Old Shep, My Pal. And to be honest he hated every single page of it. “Why does every dog in every classic novel have to croak at the end?’’ As a punishment the teacher, Mr Fogelman, who is also the director for the play Old Shep, My Pal makes him go to the rehearsals. Wallace still doesn't change his mind, but he changes the play….into a rock-and-roll, rollerblades, and a moped play!The point of view in this book is interesting. Every chapter in the book is a different character's point of view. For example, the first chapter is Wallace’s POV. The next chapter is Rachel Turner’s POV. The plot is not skipped around, so its in chronological order. Therefore, the plot is very easy to follow around. Actually, in the beginning you might be a little confused (as I was) because of the changing points of view.The Protagonists of this book are Wallace Wallace, Rick, Feather, Cavanaugh, Rachel Turner, Trudi, and Mr Fogelman. These are the main characters of this book but there are many more smaller characters. It was pretty hard finding the Antagonist but there was only one character messing with Wallace and the Play and this character is Dylan Turner, also Rachel’s little brother. Wallace Wallace is an interesting character. He goes through a lot of tough times with friends and family. He only lives with his mom since his dad left. Therefore, he does most of the tough work in the house. Mr. Fogelman has to deal with Wallace messing up his play but then he just goes with his ideas. The play then turned out great.I think the theme is that if you do something bad and don't fix it, it will get worse. Wallace wrote a bad report about his book and made his teacher mad. To make it worse, he refused to rewrite it. He was removed from football and will not join back until he writes a good one.What made it worse, he said, "This book couldn't be any lousier if it came with a letter bomb. I would not recommend it to my worst enemy." This was a good sign that this will go Against him later. Another theme I thought of was Honesty. Wallace tries never to tell a lie. Sometimes this gets him in trouble. He refuses to rewrite his book review because he doesn't want to have to tell a lie. I think these themes make sense and believable because if you read this book you will see these themes.I found this book interesting because you wouldn't expect a character named Wallace Wallace. The plot of this book was very catchy. Every time I stopped reading I wanted to read more. Gordon Korman has a great personality and a great sense of humor. Therefore I would read more of his books. I think this book is made for young readers mainly between the age of 10 to 15. This is only my opinion so if you are younger or older read this book if you want. You can purchase this book on most book websites and book stores. On Kindle eBook you can buy this for $5.38. On amazon, paperback version is $6.08. On Barnes and Noble you can buy paperback $6.99 and Hardcover from $1.99to $45.00.
”I wasn’t surprised,” I said. “I knew Old Shep was going to die before I started page one.” ”Don’t be ridiculous,“ the teacher snapped. “How?” I shrugged. “Because the dog always dies. Go to the library and pick out a book with an award sticker and a dog on the cover. Trust me, that dog is going down.”And from there, the woes of Wallace Wallace spiral ever downward. Now Wallace Wallace (WW going forward and not to be confused with Humbert Humbert, who had his own obsessive behaviors) is one compelled to truth telling, which isn’t bad of itself, but he’s also prone to hyperbole, which creates its own problems.After having thus insulted his teacher, whose favorite book as a child (and ever after) was something called Old Shep, My Pal, is given detention—detention in this case involves reporting to the school auditorium every day until he revises an unacceptable book report on OS,MP. It further involves sitting through rehearsals for the school production of OS,MP conducted by the teacher mentioned above and who has also adapted the novel into a play. Poor WW. Additionally, it means WW will miss football practice until the revised paper is completed, causing great consternation among the team who consider him responsible for the big win the previous season and cannot imagine winning again without his presence on the field. WW knows he’s no hero. His ‘ex-best friend’ (who really is a good football player) knows he’s no hero. The coach also knows, but everyone else, everyone, seems to think he matters in the ways of which he knows better.What follows, among other things, are accusations, sabotage, indignation, resentment, etc.—all those things that keep the lives of young people so fraught with stress, but told with humor, without language issues, and a genuine good feeling toward the audience. A good choice for reluctant readers, 5th-8th grade, that won’t offend parents while still entertaining young readers. It’s fun.I read this one years ago and reread it over the holidays. Actually, it was the first book finished this year, but being vain (apparently, not too vain to review a kid’s book) I didn’t want it to be the first reviewed book after my GR hiatus. Don’t tell anyone, please.
What do You think about No More Dead Dogs (2002)?
A protagonist with the unlikely name of Wallace Wallace is bound to be something different. This one certainly is. He’s decided that he’s never going to say anything but the truth. As you can imagine, this puts him in trouble with a lot of the people around him. It’s a wonder he has any friends. But he’s a sports hero and, as any American knows, we’re willing to forgive our misbehaving manchildren a great deal if they’re fantastic on the field.The story itself provides a few mild diversions as Wallace discovers where his real friends are, the fallacies of his behavior and the joys of stepping out of his supposed niche in life. However, the book doesn’t focus entirely on him; each chapter peers into the mindset of the other main characters involved. This gives it added dimensions as we explore the impacts of Wallace’s behavior on those around him.I did experience a faint annoyance that the motive behind Wallace’s truth telling was never really explored. His father was a lying philanderer and that contributed to the breakup of his marriage. Clearly, Wallace’s subconscious anger at his father formed much of the driving force behind his rigid honesty. But, other than a few paragraphs devoting itself to this bit of background information, no one ever mentions it. Even Wallace’s mother puts down his aggravating behavior to being “colorful”.But other than that, this is an interesting book for the younger set and a sly poke at books about loving dogs.
—Marsha
Wallace Wallace made the season-winning touchdown last year, and since then the whole town knows he's the star football player. Wallace insists that he isn't--he sat on the bench all season and caught the pass almost by accident, but nobody cares about that. His honesty gets him in trouble--he's in detention because he won't write a positive review of a book he hated, so now he has to sit in on the drama club's rehearsals for the play based on this ridiculous book. Wallace starts making suggestions to improve the story, from updating the dialogue to adding more action. Slowly he drifts away from the football team as he gets more invested in the play, and begins to see what true friends are--and what it means to be a friend in return.I'm indifferent to this one, but it's a perfectly serviceable option for Lit Circles--friendship, sports, drama, and a pretty bonkers play.
—Brandy
Meet Wallace Wallace, former bench warmer turned local middle school football hero. Unable to tell a lie, Wallace Wallace hands in his book report on Old Shep, My Pal. Understandably, Wallace’s instructor is completely dismayed by his assessment that, “I did not have a favorite character. I hated everyone equally. The most interesting part came on the last page where it said, “The End” (4). Pulled from the football team until he writes an appropriate book report, Wallace is forced to serve detention with the drama students and to help work on the school production of Old Shep, My Pal. Of course, given his brutal honesty when asked for his opinion, Wallace becomes the go to guy for updating the language of the dry Old Shep, My Pal play.In terms of its audience orientation, the language was very accessible with no objectionable content or humor. This make's this a safe read for ages 10 and up. I think that it is the type of novel that would work for either a male or female reader simply because it switches POVs between male and female characters and introduces romance and sports in such a way that neither bogs down the story. I rated a three, not because I disliked the writing, but because I think that the decision to use multiple narrators comes at the price of some major character development. For example, the section introducing Wallace opens with the recognition that his dad was a serial liar. The implication being that this is what makes Wallace chose to tell the blunt and honest truth no matter the consequences. A little bit more set up in terms of the father-son relationship would really help sell Wallace as a character for the reader.
—Gemmicka
