Synopses & Reviews
In a far-off desert world remarkably similar to outback Australia, evolution has taken an unexpected turn. The dominant life form is a creature covered in fur but with living steel panels beneath. It gnaws on bones and sniffs lampposts but fills up on oil, brake fluid, and petrol. And it's wonderfully clever with its wheels and wing mirrors - able to do just about anything, in fact - which is lucky since it hasn't got any arms or legs. This is the world of TRUCKDOGS! Sparky is the littlest of truckdogs (he is eleven), he wants to run with the Mongrel Pack (mostly young teens), but they think he is too young. He follows his hero, Rex, around town. Rex who is a loner runs the gas station. When the townspeople run the Mongrel Pack out of town because they make too much noise, Sparky is at a loss. Especially when a new Pack: Mr. Big and his RottWheelers come to town and start hogging all the petrol and causing the townspeople much grief. Sparky heads out to find the Mongrel Pack who with his help - and that of Rex - come back and save the town. The book has been Americanized, and also includes a brief glossary of Australian words, such as a "spanner" is a "wrench."
Synopsis
Is it an animal with an engine?
Or is it a machine with floppy ears and a wet nose?
With the eye of a Renaissance painter and the early Dr. Seuss
Synopsis
Is it an animal with an engine?
Or is it a machine with floppy ears and a wet nose?
"With the eye of a Renaissance painter and the early Dr. Seuss, Graeme Base is not your basic children's book author."
-People magazine
Graeme Base-whose picture books have sold millions of copies worldwide-has turned his creative talents to writing fiction. He and Molly, his Labrador friend and collaborator on this project, have written a dog story of epic proportions.
In a far-off desert world, evolution has taken an unexpected turn. The dominant life form is a creature covered in fur with steel panels beneath. It gnaws on bones and sniffs lampposts but fills up on oil, brake fluid, and petrol to keep running. And it's wonderfully clever with its wheels and side-view mirrors-able to do just about anything, in fact-which is lucky since it doesn't have arms or legs. It's an animal with an engine. Or is it a machine with floppy ears and a wet nose? Either way, it's known as a TruckDog. And this is the story of how the world of TruckDogs was saved by a most young and unlikely hero.