Contemporary Fiction | 9-13

Harvey Comes Home, by Colleen Nelson with illustrations by Tara Anderson (2019)
Here’s a terrific children’s book that is a tale within a tale, offering multiple perspectives when a beloved little West Highland Terrier escapes his yard and brings an unlikely duo together. Harvey escapes when his dogsitter leaves the gate unlatched. After a couple of adventurous days on his own, the bedraggled Westie is discovered by 11-year-old Austin, who is “volunteering” (the result of an ill-advised caper involving fireworks at school) with his Grandpa at a retirement home. Austin falls hard for Harvey, and is trying to find a way to keep the little scamp, despite his mother’s insistence otherwise. Meanwhile, Harvey’s real owner Maggie is devastated when she finds out her dog is missing, and does everything she can to find him.
As soon as school is out, Austin and Harvey clean windows and help the residents, including the cantankerous Mr. Pickering. Harvey works his magic on Mr. Pickering, who slowly thaws out and shares his memories of growing up in Saskatchewan during the 1930s, accompanied by his dog General and his best friend Bertie, abused and then abandoned by her drunken father. It’s not an easy story, reminiscent of Old Yeller and Black Beauty, so keep that in mind when considering this for youngsters. Great writing, authentic and painful at times, sweet but never saccharine. Just a terrific novel for kids, highly recommended. There’s apparently a teacher guide too! My thanks to Pajama Press for the digital reading copy provided through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. One note – my digital copy did not have any illustrations; the print copy features work by Tara Anderson.
More discussion and reviews of this junior fiction novel: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45143040

This book grew on me the further into the story I got. The stories told are very captivating and remind me a bit of The Little House on the Prairie books. I would recommend this book for late elementary/middle school.

Austin is a boy who volunteers at a nursing home where his grandfather works. Maggie is a girl across town whose family goes on vacation. While gone, Maggie’s dog, Harvey, escapes from the young lady who is caring for him. Austin ends up finding Harvey and takes him in. Harvey spends most of his time with Austin at the nursing home, visiting the residents. Austin really wants to keep Harvey, so he lies to his grandfather so his grandfather thinks he can’t find the owners. Over time, one of the nursing home residents, Mr. Pickering tells Austin about the hardships he faced growing up during the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. It’s these stories from Mr. Pickering that bring the story to life.

Several cautions for sensitive readers - Bertie, a young girl in the story has a drinking father who abandons her. She lives alone and because of the lack of food during the dust bowl and she struggles to survive. There are also a couple of instances of death - a pet that dies from an attack of wild, hungry animals and Bertie’s father dies. There is a difficult scene surrounding that discovery.

I believe this story is based on true information found in the author’s family history. I found the story engaging and would recommend it.

I received an ARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was a heartwarming story. I enjoyed the way the chapters were told from different point of veiws. It was nice to see the different sides of the story. I think that students who love animal stories will love this book. I'm not a huge fan of animal stories so it was a little difficult for me to finish. It would work well in a setting that has upper elementary readers.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC! This title was very cute. Switching perspectives and having some of it from Harvey, the dog, was not cheesy at all as I worried it would be. It seemed pretty realistic actually as he forces on comfort, smells, and marking his territory.
The storyline in general is sweet, there’s a nice little lesson (although lies don’t bring big consequences, the boy does see he did wrong and shows older people have a lot to share and deserve respect), and the young people in here are believable and sweet. I could see anyone from middle grade to even adults liking this one. The only negative was at times the memories shared by the older gentleman went on for a while and might have some younger people losing interest (although having historical info in there about the Dust Bowl is pretty appealing). It wasn’t a deal breaker in any way for me. I still enjoyed the book.

Harvey is a Westie whose owner, Maggie and her family go on vacation. The young woman watching him doesn't check that the gate is locked, and Harvey takes off after a squirrel, getting further and further from home. We also meet Austin, who volunteers at Bayside, a retirement facility where his grandfather works. He cleans, helps his grandfather, and visits with the elderly residents. One resident, Mr. Pickering, is very grumpy. When Harvey shows up at Bayside, Austin takes him in and volunteers to keep him until his owners show up. Of course, he lies to his grandfather, saying that the shelter is full and that he is supposed to keep the dog until the owners show up. Mr. Pickering takes a liking to the dog, since he reminds him of General, the dog he had growing up. As Austin and Harvey visit more and more, Mr. Pickering tells of his hardscrabble childhood during the Great Depression, and about his friend, Bertie, whose living circumstances were even more dire. When Maggie gets back from vacation, she searches for Harvey and puts up more signs, one of which Austin finds. Austin knows he must give up the dog, but feels a need to hear more of Mr. Pickering's story.

Strengths: This is an interesting story of the Great Depression, and a good description of how dire the situation was. Bertie's story reminded me of Irene Hunt's 1970 No Promises in the Wind, in that children were viewed as sort of dispensable. If parents couldn't feed them, the children could just fend for themselves! The involvement of the dog is a nice touch, and Bayside is an interesting place. I was glad that Maggie eventually got Harvey back, and that she understood that Austin would miss him, too.
Weaknesses: There are several rather graphic scenes; General gets his foot caught in a trap and has to have it taken off, General is attacked by wild dogs and dies, Bertie's father is found dead in the cabin, and Mr. Pickering dies.
What I really think: This starts with a chapter from Harvey's perspective, and the cover makes this look like a happy book. Most of it is, but because my readers who are apt to pick up dog books like this one tend to be a little less mature, I might have to pass on this one because of the graphic scenes. That's just my library, though. I'm sure there are plenty of readers who will enjoy the history part of this story and won't be traumatized by the troublesome part

Harvey Comes Home is a middle-grade chapter book about a beloved dog and the people who love him. The connections and relationships in this story are so touching and I loved the storyline of Mr. Pickering mistaking Harvey for his dog and the flashbacks to the time of the Great Depression. This story was touching, powerful and also super informative and our 3rd-grade son loved reading it.

Colleen Nelson has masterfully woven together a contemporary story of a beloved dog and the people whose lives he touches and a historical fiction story of a boy and his friends, family and dog during the Depression. Harvey, the sweet dog in the middle, ties everything together and makes you have all the feels.

I look forward to adding this to my elementary school libraries when it is published. I recommend it for readers ages 8-11.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pajama Press for an eARC of this book.

I LOVED this book about a dog named Harvey who escapes from home while his owner, Maggie, is away on vacation. He is found by a young boy named Austin, near a retirement home where Austin volunteers after school. Austin quickly falls for Harvey, as do the residents at the home, including Mr. Pickering, a ninety-six year old who often confuses Harvey for his former dog, General. The story consists of Harvey in the present day, and the people who love him, as well as flashback stories from Mr. Pickering about his childhood during the Dust Bowl of the 1930s.

I suggest you have a box of Kleenex handy when you read this book, as it's both heartbreaking and heartwarming. I quite enjoyed both the historical and present day storylines and how they weaved together. I think students who love animal stories will definitely be interested in this book, and I'll be purchasing it for my library collection.

Colleen Nelson's seemingly simple narrative about a West Highland Terrier who strays from home is a balancing act of narratives that is nothing short of brilliant. I love the jigsaw of voices between Maggie, the girl who lost Harvey and Austin, the boy who found him.. Add to that, Harvey himself, propelled by scent, and Mr. Pickering's reminiscences of growing up in the prairies during the Dust Bowl.

This small novel packs a wallop of emotions. You may pick the book up because of the Westie, but you'll stay to find out what happened to Maggie, Austin and Mr. Pickering. And I dare you to get to the end without shedding a tear!