Painter and Ugly

Gr 1—4—Blake presents a story of canine friendship on the Junior Iditarod Trail. Painter and Ugly are sled dogs living with their boy, Jake, on the Yukon River. They are an inseparable pair, playing together, eating out of the same bowl, and insisting on sleeping next to one another. They are also the fastest of the local racing dogs, and that leads to them being split up eventually and placed on different teams as the lead dogs. It's a lonely life for them, and they miss one another. However, during the 80-mile race, the dogs find a way to be together and to lead their teams to victory. Blake's glorious paintings, done in oil on canvas, are slightly impressionistic but do an effective job of reinforcing the action and changing moods of this satisfying story.—Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA