Book Review: The Christmas Dog

Betty Kowalski isn’t looking forward to the holidays. She just can’t seem to find Christmas in her heart. Maybe it's because her husband is gone. Maybe it's because she's missing her children. Or maybe it has something to do with her obnoxious neighbour, who seems to be tearing his house apart and rearranging it on the lawn.

But when a mangy dog appears on her doorstep, the stage is set for Betty to learn what Christmas is really all about.

There are three threads to this story: Betty's animosity towards her neighbour, a homeless dog that repeatedly shows up at her door until she lets him into her heart, and her runaway granddaughter who has arrived on her doorstep after she's been missing for a couple of months.

To be honest, I didn't enjoy this book at all. It was an exceptionally easy read, bordering on fluff and I read it in one day. Being that is is a relatively short book, I didn't feel there was an opportunity for a good connection to any of the characters, as some things were brushed over while others were overly exaggerated and repetitious. I lost interest in it very quickly and had to force myself to focus on the last few chapters just so that I could complete it and give it an honest review.

I hate to be negative here, really I do, but a review is intended to be honest, and therefore, honest I shall be. I thought this book was silly and I cannot see myself recommending it to anyone.

I think that had this book been longer, allowing the characters and storyline to become more developed it would be much more enjoyable to read. The author could have done so much more with this book to have made it better.

Available now at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.