Product Description

On a moonlit winter night, a team of dogs pulls a sled, taking the narrator and readers on a wondrous ride through the snow, into and out of the woods. It is a ride you'll wish would never end.

Through this exquisite prose poem, Gary Paulsen shares the joy, the beauty, and the grandeur of the outdoors. With his joyous text and Ruth Wright Paulsen's exuberant and expressive illustrations, Dogteam is a celebration of nature, a dance that invites everyone to join in.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #34520 in Books
• Published on: 1995-10-01
• Released on: 1995-10-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 32 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780440411307
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Publishers Weekly
The Newbery Honor author, a two-time participant in the Iditarod, describes the thrill of a winter's night run with a team of sled dogs. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3-There are few things more beautiful than a moonlit winter night, and Paulsen has captured that, plus the thrill of speeding across the snow via dogsled, in a text as crisp, clean, and magical as such evenings. It is the dogs' emotions, as much as the narrator's, that are evoked: the animals strain at their harnesses, singing in anticipation of the run. Ruth Wright Paulsen's illustrations show the nuances of canine behavior in the positions of ears, tails, lolling tongues, and flashing paws. The swift, strong, smiling creatures are one with the white and blue-black night; on one double-page spread, the aurora borealis in ghostly greens is their background. Dogteam reads aloud beautifully, but its poetry will be best understood through one-on-one sharing with an adult. All who see and hear it will, for a few moments, join in the winter run. Children who live in areas without snow will experience the wonder of its season through this book. For those living in cold climates, it may inspire a nighttime ski, or skate, or at least a moonlit walk, and they will understand the dogs' dilemma: although it is comforting to come home to warmth and firelight, something in them yearns to run forever.
Carla Kozak, San Francisco Public Library
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Ages 4-7. As Paulsen takes his dog sled for a run on a winter's night, he carries readers along through the moonlit landscape. Immediacy and brevity mark each part of the poetic telling of the adventure--harnessing the exuberant dogs, riding through the woods and across a frozen lake, watching the wolves silently appear and disappear, and returning home. The illustrations include pen-and-ink drawings of the dogs, the sled, and sometimes the driver, tinted with watercolor and set against watercolor backgrounds. The painting is more effective than the pen-and-ink work, and the two art styles don't always blend well. As a whole, however, the book re-creates an experience unusual in picture books. Teachers might try reading it to children who consider themselves too old for picture books, particularly those who know Paulsen's other work. Carolyn Phelan

Customer Reviews

Stunning
Beautiful illustrations and vivid, descriptive sentences! I purchased this book to teach my first graders about descriptive writing. They were in awe of the book! Living in the south, most of them have never even seen snow or even heard of dog sledding. After having been dog sledding myself I knew I had to find a way to share the experience and this book was it! It is truly one of my favorites!

An excellent picture book
DOGTEAM is a beautifully illustrated, as well as beautifully, simply, dramatically written book. It is not exactly a children's picture book, but more for lovers of dogs of all ages. Gary Paulsen is the author and retired dogsledder, who is most remembered for his young adult books such as HATCHET and DOGSONG. Ruth Wright Paulsen is his wife and the spectacular watercolor illustrator of the book. The picture book seems to be based on Paulsen's midnight adventures with his beloved dogteam, and readers will feel as if they are running alongside the dogteam, the sled whispering behind them. A great book.

A book for all ages
Gary Paulson's Dogteam is a beautifully written prose poem that describes a dogteam's running on a cold winter's night. As the author takes the reader across the moonlit trail, the sensory, descriptive words make you feel you are truly on the trail with the team. The watercolor illustrations by Ruth Wright Paulson capture the eagerness the dogs feel for running at night. I use this book with third grade students to model the use of descriptive language in writing. The children love the book and read it over and over.