When Mr. Dog Bites - Softcover

BRIAN CONAGHAN is a forty-year-old Scot, living and working as a teacher in Dublin, and has a degree in Creative Writing from the University of Glasgow. When Mr Dog Bites is his debut American novel.

Gr 10 Up—Dylan Mint suffers from Tourette's syndrome. He also just found out he has only eight months to live. He decides the only thing to do is come up with a list of "Cool Things To Do Before I Cack It." The list includes having sex for the first time, finding a new best friend for his best friend Amir, and convincing the army to allow his dad to come home from the war. It's obvious to readers from early on that Dylan is not actually going to die—this belief stems from a misunderstanding at the doctor's office. It is also clear his dad is not actually in the army or at war. This first person account is insightful, engaging, and immerses teens into the world of Tourette's. British and Scottish slang, coupled with Dylan's scattered thought processes, can make it difficult to understand at times. Though the excessive swearing may be off-putting to some readers, the language is authentic, given the protagonist's disorder. This is an uninhibited and compelling look inside the mind of a teen living with Tourette's. The ending, neatly tied up in a bow, seems far-fetched, but readers will root for Dylan nonetheless and would not want to see it end any other way. If they can get past the challenging language, they will be rewarded with a relatable character who has many of the same problems they do.—Tammy Turner, Centennial High School, Frisco, TX