Synopses & Reviews
Everything in Zanna's family seems to be on hold. Her father is far away. She lives with her sister and mother in a house that doesn't belong to them; all their furniture is crammed into one room and covered with sheets.
Is that why Zanna is drawn to Moss? He is a Border Collie, a working sheepdog whose life is on hold, too, since his owner was paralyzed by a stroke and cannot speak. No one else on the farm his time for Moss, so he is kept on a chain in theback of the old cow barn.
Zanna tries to befriend Moss, to free him and restore his spirit. But he cares only for his master, who can no longer respond to him. Both man and dog teach her about the power of trust and determination. But who has the power to keep Moss from being sold and sent away?
Betty Levin's answer comes as a welcome and totally satisfying surprise, and Zanna and Moss will find a warm place in the hearts of young readers.
Synopsis
Moss is on his way to becoming a champion sheepdog when his owner has a stroke. A neighbor, ten-year-old Zanna, takes over the dog's training. Then Zanna's father gets a job in California, and the family must move. What will happen to Moss? "A thoughtful, satisfying novel.....Entrancing."--Kirkus Reviews.
About the Author
Betty Levin is the author of many popular books for young people, including
The Banished; Look Back, Moss; Away to Me, Moss; Island Bound; Fire in the Wind; and
The Trouble with Gramary. Betty Levin has a sheep farm in Lincoln, Massachusetts, where she also raises and trains sheepdogs.
In Her Own Words...
"I started writing stories almost as soon as I began to read. They were derivative and predictable-as much a way of revisiting characters and places in books I loved as it was a means of self-expression. I don't remember when words and their use became important. In the beginning was the story, and for a long time it was all that mattered.
"Even though I always wrote, I imagined becoming an explorer or an animal trainer. This was long before I had to be gainfully employed. It wasn't until after I'd landed in the workplace, first in museum research and then in teaching, that I returned to story writing-this time for my young children. Then a fellowship in creative writing at the Bunting Institute of Radcliffe College gave me and my storymaking a chance. One affirmation led to another, and now there are books-and some readers.
"When I talk with children in schools and libraries, I realize that child readers are still out there. When they get excited about a character or a scene, a new dimension opens for them, a new way of seeing and feeling and understanding.
"Of course there is always one child who asks how it feels to be famous and to be recognized in supermarkets. I explain that the only people who recognize me are those who have seen me working my sheep dogs or selling my wool at sheep fairs. That response often prompts another query: Why write books if they don't make you rich and famous? I usually toss that question back at the children. Why do they invent stories? How does story writing make them feel?
"Eventually we explore the distinction between wanting to be a writer and needing to write. If we want to write, then we must and will. Whether or not we become published authors, we all have tales to tell and stories to share. Literature can only continue to grow from the roots of our collective experience if children understand that they are born creative and that all humans are myth users and storytellers."