I LOVED it! Very informative, humorous, full of helpful examples, just something about the pedigrees that makes it tough to understand.

I read this book and loved it!!!I was planning on teaching my dog to be a great show dog.When I read this book,me and my dog won three 1st place ribbons.After readind it,me and my dog shared more common grounds.Thus was a great book and I give it the full five stars!!!

In this book, Audrey Jean Schultz is just getting over the death of her mother and trying to survive without her. One day she finds a ghost dog, who had really died a long time ago. Audrey was a good character, but the book was a little too weird for my taste. Ghost dogs and animals coming back to life are not my type. If you like weird books, this book may be for you.

"Weird" is not the word I would associate with this book. Lynn Hall deserves a lot of praise for dealing with some very difficult subjects - relationships between a single father and daughter, growing up, and of course death - in a very concise story (only 71 pages). The main character, Audrey, has just lost her mother to what we presume is leukemia, although Audrey just says "something in her blood cells." She meets a stray collie whom she names Shadows and begins to heal through talking and playing with him. One of the things I like most is that even though Audrey is an "unreliable narrator," she is entirely believable and the reader trusts her completely. Hall also grazes on some other issues - the fact that Audrey has been left alone with a father she doesn't know very well, leaving behind her imaginary animals, trying to be an adult in the house.

One of my few complaints about the book is that Audrey and her father never really discussed her mother's death, so the reader can only hope that some kind of talk will be forthcoming - specifically that someday Audrey will be convinced that she did not cause her mother's death.

Yes, the dog Shadows has been dead for five years, and perhaps he was just a ghost, but one of the most beautiful lines in the whole book comes in a letter from the dog's former owner:
"I would like to believe that somehow he knew there was a girl who needed him, and that the great love he held for all people enabled him to cross over the invisible wall that separates us from those who have gone on to another form of life, which we call death."

The only plot issue I had was that the book ends immediately after Audrey finds out that Shadows was indeed dead, so the reader can only assume that she never goes looking for the "ghost" again and starts to deal with her mother's death on her own.

This is one of my favourite books from childhood; it makes me cry every time. I brought it with me to college as a short comfort read.

to short and the book ended that the old fart was killed by an icl

The reason I gave this book a five star rating is because, it saved all of the good parts, it had so much suspense, and it gave a ton of details. In the book it saved how Richard Moline died until it was the right time. When they said that Mrs.Amling died they used so much exquisite details how she was laying in the snow with a pool of blood around her. Also when Clarie looked at the famliy photo that she found in Mrs.Amling's house she desribed the child as a square-faced and stocky little boy. (Even though the little boy was actually a little girl.) I would recommend this book to the ages of eleven to sixteen because it talks about murders with great detail and kids younger than that would not be able to handle it. Another reason is it talks about not having a mom because she left home and some kids are put through that situation.

I thought the book was great excpt for the was Mrs. Amling had been killed from the falling icicle and the way they found out who killed Mr. Moline.

This book is about a frog and a parrot who have their differences and struggle to get along, but in the end... well that's for you to see! It's a good childrens book and the illustrations are incredibly fun! This book is a cute one.

I like this book. It is a good story about a girl and her dog. The vet sceans are relistic and you could tell the girl cared about her dog. It is a good book about dog shows

Lynn Hall's book about her Paso Fino gelding, Tazo, is a nice book for anyone interested in an introduction to the Paso Fino breed or to horse ownership in general. In the book, she gives an account of her journey through horse ownership and lessons learned. Even though, this book is listed as a juvenile book adults should also find it fun to read. My only criticism of the book is that she rides without a helmet which is not the example we want to set for young riders. Overall, the book is nicely written and I highly recommend it.

I found this book very interesting, but I have competed in several shows so most of the info wasn't "new" to me. I still think it's a great read and will help you understand the sport. It's the book you should probably purchase once you've seen what goes on at shows and have a basic idea of dog showing and will help you in your final decision of whether or not to show your dog. It also explains that you cannot go to your first show and expect an impressive win e.g. Best in Show.

Anyone who reads the book will recognize that phrase, "You're smart and been brought up right". And if have I owe it all to Ms. Hall.

I learned things here that I've never understood about showing but have heard old showmen say & Ms. Hall takes us through our first dry run of a show, with that 'bright youngster' & finally tells us how long to bang our heads against the post before giving up because chances are, our first dog is probably a dud:-( and we'll have to try again.

I am planning to hit the Spring circuit & show in my first (keep it small) show then. Thanks to Ms. Hall I can honestly say I don't think I get points but at least now the whole thing isn't so mysterious. If you want to show dogs, BUY THIS BOOK.

Hope to see you at Westminister!

I hesitated to look at a book that is entitled "Dog Showing For Beginners" as I have been showing dogs for 30 years. BUT, I absolutely loved this book because of the keen insight into every aspect of showing dogs. No, it isn't a training book, you DO need to go to handling classes to learn that, but I have never read a book so complete on the logistics of showing dogs. It is written from the perspective of someone who remembers what it was like to start showing dogs, and she walks you through every step and lets you know just how to be prepared and what to expect. If you are new to showing, you MUST have this book, it will answer EVERY question you have about how dog shows and the people who attend them "work". My favorite chapter and a most important point is about the politics - YES, you DO have to know what is going on behind the scenes! You will not be disappointed in this book, even if you are an old timer like myself.

It was a pretty good book, but it's kind of hard to understand if you don't read a lot into the plot and characters. Also, some things are seemingly taken for granted throughout the book, and the ending was disappointing. It is still a good book in the sense that the young Halsey girl is learning to cope with life and is opening her eyes more towards the world.

I like stories with horses. I loved Barney and Chestnut.I also like mysteries. Pat, one of the charitars reminded me alot of myself. I would like it to have been a bit more suspensful. Overall the charictars were interesting and the story was good. I liked the setting and the way the book started too.

This book is good, though is slightly depressing. It is the story of Riff, a young adult Borzoi who's fate is undetermined when his elderly mistress dies. Riff is saved by a young boy who's family owns a hunting lodge. The family can't understand the boy, who prefers to hunt with a camera instead of a gun; nor can they understand Riff, because he is very different than their hunting dogs. The sad part of the story hits when Riff's boy is shot accidentally by some hunters... and Riff sets out to track down the people who shot his boy. Its a decent book, but a little depressing.