Wind-Wild Dog by Barbara M. Joosse

Illustrated by Kate Kiesler. 40 p., Holt, 2006. Some children who are adopted, particularly at relatively older ages, may experience mixed feelings about their connection and belonging with their new family. In the life of a sled dog, this story provides a metaphor for this experience. Ziva is the last puppy to be adopted from her litter, at least partly because they’re spooked by her having one brown eye and one blue one. But she is finally adopted by the Man, who is kind and gentle to her. He has some of the wildness that Ziva experiences in herself, and he understands her wildness. When Ziva is ready to train, she finds that she loves pulling weight. But still, she sometimes wants to run wild. One day, Ziva helps to pull a sled for the first time. At a rest stop, runs off into the snow, delighting in her strength. She meets a wolf, and as she smells its fur, she smells her own fur too, and realizes that she smells wild, but also smells like the Man. She misses him, and runs back to him, to a loving reunion with him. Expressively illustrated with oil paintings in brown and blue tones, this story offers empathy with the mixed feelings that some adopted children may experience, and a model for resolution. Ages 4-8