Reivew: Dogs of Winter by Bobbie Pyron

The Dogs of Winter by Bobbie Pyron

Publisher : Arthur A. Levine Books/Scholastic, October 1, 2012
Category:  Grades 5 and up/YA Crossover
Tour Dates: February, 2013
Available in: Print and Kindle, 320 pages

Like thousands of other children in post-Soviet Russian, five-year-old Mishka finds himself trying to survive on the streets of Moscow after his mother disappears and he has no home. Help comes from an unlikely source: a pack a feral street dogs! For two years, Mishka and the dogs protect and love each other, becoming a family in every sense of the word. When Mishka has the chance to rejoin the world of humans, will he want to? Inspired by a true story!

My thoughts:
This story is amazing.  I read it in one sitting, I couldn't put it down.  The writing is captivating and the story is heartbreaking.  The reality of the inhumanity of humans is shocking and sad.  That this tale of a small boy, who is driven to see the worst that people have to offer, is based on a true story is tragic.  I found myself cheering for the family he found while at the same time cursing the people who forced his hand.  
The characters are wonderful, both the good and the bad.  The writing is descriptive and filled with emotion.  For a dog lover this is an absolute MUST read.