Best Mate by Michael Morpurgo

January 28, 2011 · Filed under Adventure, Books · Tagged animals, Best Mate, dogs, greyhound, Michael Morpurgo

Best Mate (also published as Born to Run) is a book about a greyhound dog called Best Mate who starts a journey of a lifetime when he is abandoned as a puppy and rescued by a boy named Patrick. He loves his life with Patrick until two animals smugglers come and capture Best Mate and take him away to be raced against other greyhounds. The racer’s daughter Becky soon learns ugly truth and runs away with Best Mate, whom she calls Brighteyes. But life in the streets is a horrible nightmare. Brighteyes and Becky have some trouble (I won’t spoil it with details) and Brighteyes must start yet another life …

Great book! My favourite part was when Patrick risked his own safety rescuing Best Mate and his siblings from the disgusting canal water. It was very heroic! The best thing about this book is the satisfying, but unsatisfying, ending. And the ending made me think about things from each of the main characters’ point of view: Patrick’s, Joe’s, and Best Mate’s etc..

I also liked that every few chapters we got to hear the thoughts and feelings of Best Mate himself and this added an extra element to the story to be able to see what both the person and the dog were thinking about the same situation. I thought that the way Michael Morpurgo writes his words make you feel like he is bursting with ideas and words and ways to describe things. He uses great language and clear uncluttered ideas.

This book is for animal lovers and kids who like a bit of adventure. It would be best for kids 8+. I give it a 11 out of 10.

Best Mate proves that it is not just cats that can have more than one life.

Saoirse, 10