Before You Were Mine

Maribeth Boelts
Putnam Juvenile (2007)
ISBN 9780399245268
Reviewed by Conner Aguren (age 3) and Mom for Reader Reviews (12/07)

A boy wonders about the life of his dog before he adopted him from the animal shelter. “Before You Were Mine,” explores many possibilities of a dog’s life before coming to a new owner: showing reasons such as intolerance for dog behaviors, neglect, becoming lost, and/or not being welcomed at a new home.

“Did you like the book?”
“Yes. It was all about a puppy. It had a happy ending.”
“Do you think the dog had a rough life before coming to the animal shelter?”
“I don’t know. Lot’s of things could have happened.”
“Would you adopt a dog from the animal shelter?”
“What does adopt mean? I want all the animals!”

Parent’s comments:

The watercolor illustrations set the nostalgic tone of this heartwarming book. A lot of pages are dedicated to hypothetical situations, most negative (otherwise the dog probably wouldn’t be in a shelter), that I felt more could have been shown about the joy of the dog being rescued from a shelter. I feel it’s the author’s epilogue in “Before You Were Mine” that explains the message of giving shelter dog a second chance best.

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