This Side of Wild

This Side of Wild by Gary Paulsen, 120 pages

This book is an autobiography of Paulsen.   There are five chapters, each a different story from a time in his life.  Most of his stories involve dogs, because he has always had dogs in life, including sled dogs, as he has run the Iditarod three times.  Although you'd think these stories, about him running the Iditarod and others like it, would be the main focus of this book, you would be wrong.  His stories start out much more simply, like rescuing a dog from a pound that later saves his life.  Or a story about a dog that had learned to communicate and train people.  Paulsen is a great storyteller and this book reflects his skills.  Kids who like biographies or stories about animals will love this.