Book Review 2

Osofsky, Audrey. My Buddy. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1992.

My Buddy follows the story of a young boy in a wheelchair. This particular picture book focuses on his service dog, Buddy, and the ways Buddy helps along. It follows events of everyday life from school to home and how he came about to get Buddy. The young boy puts a positive light on his wheelchair but explaining how cool it is to have buddy.

I feel there is a positive and not so positive side to this. The only negative I could find is that some young readers might stereotype all people in wheelchairs have dogs. However, my including a dog in the story will draw readers into the story. I found there to be a positive light on being in a wheelchair by having the character explain all the interesting things buddy can do for him. It even puts a positive spin on the fact that his friends got tired of helping him. The fact that the young boy character is young shows that even children have struggles in life and works to be more relatable for young readers and can be a book read by teachers to students.