Baymo

Baymo
Seth C. Kadish

My rating: ★★★

ASIN: B00O1AAQVI (Kindle eBook)
Publisher: LadyBee
Date of publication: September 28, 2014
Age: to be determined below...
Genre: Fantasy

Themes: dogs, social norms, responsibility, consequences

Baymo is tired of being a dog; humans have all the fun. He makes a wish to Father Moon that he can experience the freedom of manhood, and it's granted. Because of his struggles with human elements like walking, clothes, food, and talking (he likes howling), he soon prompts suspicion from the police. Running away into the city, he makes friends with a homeless man and learns the hard way just what being a man means. Will he ever be able to return to his original form?

With all the excitement of a puppy, Baymo is action-packed and full of adventure. It's smaller (roughly 98 pages) and broken up into easy-read chapters. It's also got some doses of humor that is sure to get the reader giggling. It's a fun story. But I do want to say: heavier elements of the story and some complex vocabulary have me disagreeing with the author's initial target audience (7 - 11 year-olds). Kadish favors abstract similes and metaphors, as well as the honest truth: being a dog-turned-man means a pretty hard life. Baymo has some fun, but he also gets seriously ill and involved with some very dangerous men (like, have-knife-will-kill sort of men). There's no sugar-coating on this story.

So what do I think? Overall, 10 - 14 year-olds may better appreciate the story reading on their own. Or, it could make a good read-aloud with your kids. It could prompt serious consideration about different pros/cons in changing your species! Try it out; it's a fun read.

Find it in digital format on Amazon

(I received a digital copy of the book from the author in exchange for an honest review)