Timothy Malt is an ordinary twelve-year-old schoolboy who at the start of A Dog Called Grk (Yearling, 272pp, May 2008, ISBN 978-0440421474) lives an ordinary life, going to school and playing computer games at home.
Stanislavia
Meanwhile a military coup has deposed the democratically elected President of Stanislavia, described as "a small, mountainous country in the part of Eastern Europe that is closest to Russia." The villainous Colonel Zinfandel seizes power and arrests the President on corruption charges, and sends his men to arrest President Djinko's loyal staff. Amongst those to be arrested are the Stanislavian Ambassador to Britain and his wife, fifteen-year-old son Max, and twelve-year-old daughter Natascha Raffifi.
The Ambassador's family hear the news too late to flee and are taken away by Zinfandel's feared henchman Major Raki and his men; all except Natascha's brave little black and white dog, Grk. He bites one of the men and is kicked into the street where he lies unmoving as the family are driven away, back to Stanislavia where prison awaits them.
Timothy Malt
Several days later a young schoolboy with a passion for computer games. On the day he gets another helicopter simulator game (he already has three) he falls over a bump on the pavement. He lies on the ground groaning until a tongue begins to lick his face -- it is Grk who, as the reader learns later, has been sleeping rough and foraging for unwanted bread from dustbins and kebabs dropped in the road; "for several days Grk wandered around London, lost, lonely and frightened...he dodged cars and lorries. He slept in parks, or curled under a pile of cardboard boxes. he was kicked, and chased, and almost run over."
Tim has secretly always wanted a dog, but his parents have always been adamant that his mother's allergies rule out a pet. When Grk follows Tim home and sneaks into the house, Tim's parents are horrified. Slowly, reluctantly, they agree to take Tim to the Embassy to find Grk's owners. When Tim learns that they have gone home, convinced that a dog's home will mean Grk's death, he decides to follow the family to Stanislavia...
Joshua Doder
What is impressive about A Dog Called Grk is that its story seems entirely natural, indeed almost inevitable. It's a testament to a very well-written book that at times is uproriously funny, at other times incredibly poignant. Author Joshua Doder (the pseudonym for sometimes journalist Josh Lacey) has written several series of books for children, including six more books about Grk. They are aimed at nine to twelve year olds, but will also appeal to dog-loving adults. It will be a pleasure hunting down the next Grk book.
Colin Harvey - Author six novels, and editor of four anthologies; professional reviewer since 2003, including six years at Strange Horizons. Member of ...
