Lost and Found

Patricia Morley is professor emerita of English and Canadian Studies at
Concordia University. She is the author of several books, including The
Mountain Is Moving: Japanese Women’s Lives, Kurlek and Margaret
Laurence: The Long Journey Home.

Lucy Bell and her family have just moved from Guelph to a new town, and
school is about to begin. Lucy feels lost and lonely. Boys are playing
nearby, but there is not a single girl in sight. Lucy fears she will
never make a friend, but on the way home from the store she encounters a
very small white dog with soft, floppy ears and silky hair. Lucy loves
him at first sight and is enchanted when he follows her home. Her
parents call him Trouble, and he seems to respond to the name.

Her parents take Lucy and Trouble to the animal shelter, where they
encounter Trouble’s young owner, Andy, and his parents. Andy is joyful
but Lucy is devastated. She runs off down a corridor to cry and stumbles
upon new cages of puppies, some white, some black. Her attention is
caught by a small white dog who looks sad.

The man in charge tells the Bell family that this dog had belonged to a
girl like Lucy, but her little brother had become allergic to dog hair
and the family had been forced to leave the dog in the shelter: whoever
adopts her will have to be kind and patient to win her heart. The little
dog rests her head against Lucy’s neck and sighs. The choice is made.
A lonely child and a lonely dog have found their match.

Lost and Found is a gentle, well-written tale that will likely appeal
more to girls than to boys. Highly recommended.