The Puppy Problem Read online

  Jilly gave him a big grin. “Leave it to me,” she said. “We can speak to Chester at the newsstand. He can take them on the paper route. Oh, I could eat you up!”

  “Sausage dog, not sausage, remember, Jilly!” said Gizmo, his voice a little high-pitched.

  “Don’t worry, I remember,” Jilly reassured him.

  Gizmo hurried back home to add the picture to the article. Then, while Granny was working in the garden, he copied it on Granny’s photocopier. When he signaled through the window, Jilly came around to the front door with something to carry the copies in. They filled it up and, trying to look like they weren’t doing anything unusual, headed for the newsstand.

  An old Scottie dog was standing in the doorway.

  “Chester, we need your help!” Jilly barked.

  “Oh aye,” said the Scottie dog slowly. “And what can I do for you?”

  “We need you to include this in your paper route,” said Gizmo. “It’s for all the dogs in the village.”

  Chester took a look at Gizmo’s article and raised his impressive eyebrows.

  “Anything for you, Jilly,” he said. “Leave them there.”

  They did as they were told, holding on to a few for the walk home.

  “Gizmo,” Jilly said anxiously, “do you really think this will work?”

  “I hope so,” Gizmo replied. “All we can do now is wait.”

  Gizmo scrambled through the fence to Jilly’s house early the next morning. He’d made a sign, which he dragged after him.

  Jilly had already lined the puppies up on the front porch. They were under strict instructions to be on their best behavior, and so far it was going okay.

  “I made a sign!” Gizmo declared cheerfully.

  “What does it say?” asked Jilly.

  “Oh dear, is my writing that bad?” asked Gizmo. He read it aloud.

  “It’s perfect!” said Jilly, trying to break up a play fight between Wilfred and Willabelle.

  Once the puppies had gotten settled, they took to watching the gate hopefully.

  “Do you think anyone’s going to turn up, Mommy?” asked Wilma.

  “I’m sure they will, my darling,” said Jilly, but Gizmo could tell by her voice that she wasn’t at all sure.

  “I can hear someone,” said Wilfred, who had very good hearing.

  And then all of a sudden everyone was there.

  First through the gate was Bunty with Val the farmer and her friend Eric.

  “Well, if Bunty hadn’t run off this morning, we’d never have followed her here, would we, Eric,” Val said. “Just look at those adorable puppies. You should take one of them home!”

  Eric scratched his beard.

  “You have heaps of space at your farm,” Val encouraged him. “And a puppy would be good company. I couldn’t do without Bunty, even if she does sometimes go missing!” Bunty wagged her tail. Eric crouched down and held out a hand to Wilma. She sniffed it and climbed straight into the big pocket of his coat. “Looks like this one’s coming with me!” Eric laughed.

  “My dog dragged me here too!” said a tall man who had come from the other side of the village with his young son. “We were taking Rex here for a walk. We normally just head to the park, but he seemed determined we come this way and here we are. Would you just look at those gorgeous puppies!”

  “Can we have one, pleeeease!” pleaded the boy. “I’ll clean my room for a whole year, please!” The boy held one of Rex’s dog treats out to Willabelle, who pounced on it and began to chew. Once she’d finished she licked the boy’s face—her customary greeting.

  Gizmo made his way over to Jilly. For the first time since he had met her, her long tail was wagging happily. “I think your plan is working!” she told him.

  A family from just the other end of Pine Tree Close were the next to fall in love with a puppy. They chose Wilfred.

  “That just leaves Wolfie,” said Jilly. Gizmo could tell she was feeling a little nervous for him. He was the naughty one, after all.

  Gizmo searched the crowd, then spotted the perfect owner for Wolfie—a truck driver who lived near Willow Tree Farm. “Wolfie’ll have lots of great adventures if he’s adopted by a truck driver. That way he’ll get to see the country and he’ll still be able to see you and the other puppies.”

  “You’d be great company on the road,” said Annabelle, the truck driver, bending down to talk to Wolfie, who was tugging at her pant leg playfully. “I was just passing by when I saw the crowd.” She and Wolfie instantly seemed to like each other. “There’s plenty of room in the truck for you,” she said. Wolfie was so excited he had a little accident, which made Annabelle laugh all the more. She bent down and picked him up. “I can see you’re going to be trouble,” she joked. Wolfie smothered her in kisses. He was smitten.

  Jilly was relieved, but Gizmo could see she was also sad to see them go. “They’re all grown up now,” she said to him. “But they’ll always be my babies. I’m so glad I’ll still be able to see them. Thank you for helping us.”

  When the humans had gone, Gizmo was delighted to be congratulated by all his new friends.

  “You’re clearly a natural writer,” said Jilly.

  “You know, I know a bit about sports,” said Lola. “I could be your sports reporter, if you like.”

  “And I could do travel,” said Bob. “I know the train timetable by heart.”

  “I know a thing or two about beauty,” said Bruno with pride.

  “And being a farmer, Bunty should do the weather reports,” suggested Bob.

  Bunty wagged her tail.

  “Looks like you’ve got a newspaper on your hands,” said Jilly. “What are you going to call it?”

  Gizmo thought for a moment.

  “That’s a good name,” said Jilly.

  “And I want you to be my lead reporter,” said Gizmo.

  “No, no,” said Jilly. “Give that job to someone else.”

  Gizmo was crestfallen. “But you know everyone in Puddle. I thought you’d like to, now that the puppies have left home.

  You do have your paw on the pulse of Puddle,” he added, trying to win her over. “Why don’t you want to do it?”

  “I just don’t, Gizmo,” said Jilly, and she walked off.

  The following morning, Gizmo was still feeling worried about Jilly. On his walk into town he bumped into Lola. She didn’t know what the matter was with Jilly, but she had some great ideas for an article on the pros and cons of chasing balls versus frisbees.

  Bunty didn’t know what the matter was either. “Has she got fleas?” she asked. “They can be very troublesome,” she added, snapping at, and missing, Fliss.

  “Perhaps she’s hungry,” said Bob. “She does have quite a healthy appetite.”

  “Good thinking,” replied Gizmo.

  But it was Chester who had the best idea.

  “Have you asked her what the matter is?” Armed with some sausages from Granny’s kitchen and a card, Gizmo made his way over to Jilly’s. She was lying in her kennel looking lonely, but lifted her head at the scent.

  “I thought these might cheer you up!” said Gizmo.

  Jilly wagged her tail and tucked in happily.

  “And I wrote you this card,” said Gizmo proudly, showing her.

  Suddenly Jilly seemed unhappy again. She pushed the card to one side.

  “See, I drew a picture of the two of us,” said Gizmo, showing her. “You’re much taller in real life, obviously, but I didn’t have enough space on the page.”

  “It’s a very nice drawing,” said Jilly.

  “The message is even better!”

  “Gizmo, you’re like a dog with a bone!” exclaimed Jilly, exasperated. “I can’t read the message.”

  “I know, my writing’s not very good,” agreed Gizmo.

  “It’s not your writing,” said Jilly quietly. “Gizmo, I can’t read.”

  Gizmo stepped back in shock, accidentally tipping Jilly’s water bowl. She moved away and lay on her side.

  “You mean you really can’t read?” he asked her.

  “Yes, Gizmo, I really can’t read,” she replied miserably.

  Things were beginning to make sense to Gizmo. “So when you didn’t know the name of Bunty’s farm, it was because—”

  “—I’ve never been able to read the sign,” sighed Jilly.

  “And when I had the FRAGILE label on my bottom, you wouldn’t tell me what it said because—”

  “—I didn’t know,” said Jilly.

  “And I remember now, you asked me to read my news article to you. Why didn’t you say?”

  “I didn’t want you to think I was stupid,” replied Jilly.

  “I don’t think you’re stupid,” replied Gizmo. “That’s why it says in your card, ‘You’re the best.’

  You’re the BEST

  Because you are, Jilly. You know everyone, and you always know what to do. You never get anything stuck on your bottom or fall into water troughs, and you introduced me to all your friends.”

  “But I can’t read,” said Jilly.

  “You can learn to, if you like,” said Gizmo.

  Jilly thought for a while. “Well, now that the puppies have left home, I will have more time . . .” she said slowly.

  “I’m sure there’s someone in the village who could teach you,” Gizmo encouraged her.

  Suddenly Jilly wagged her tail. “Actually, Gizmo, I know just the right dog,” she said.

  “You always know the right dog,” replied Gizmo. “Who is it?”

  “You!” she barked.

  They started the very next day. Jilly turned out to be an excellent student. She and Gizmo went through letters and words in the morning, and by lunchtime she could read the word “SAUSAGE.”

  In the
afternoon she and the rest of the gang told Gizmo all their ideas for stories. And he, as editor-in-chief, decided which would make it into the very first edition of The Daily Bark.

  “Bertie the Labrador gave me this,” said Jilly, handing it to Gizmo. “I think it’s a recipe. Can we include it?”

  “Does horse manure really count as a recipe?” asked Gizmo, reading quickly. He was busy cutting up words and working out what the front-page headline should be.

  “I think it does to Bertie,” replied Jilly.

  “There now, what do you think of this?” asked Gizmo, unveiling the headline to everyone.

  Jilly looked at it carefully. “I’m sure it’s good,” she said. “But I think we’ve got a better one.” The dogs of The Daily Bark unfurled a piece of paper to reveal a headline made from cut-out letters.

  Gizmo didn’t know whether to bark or wag. In the end he turned in a circle twice and sat down.

  “I hope you don’t mind, but I got the others to help with the article too,” Jilly said.

  Bunty, Bob, Lola, and Bruno cheered Gizmo and they all helped to stick together the front page and make copies for every dog in Puddle.

  As they walked down to see Chester at the newsstand, Gizmo had never felt so happy.

  Watch out for another

  the Daily Bark

  story

  COMING SOON!

  About the Author and Illustrator

  LAURA JAMES lives near Bath, England, with her two writing companions, wire-haired dachshunds Brian and Florence. They are a constant source of inspiration for her stories and she adores their every bark, tail-wag, and tummy-rub request. Sometimes she wonders if they might secretly be writing about her too! She is also the author of the Pug and the Fabio the World’s Greatest Flamingo Detective series.

  CHARLIE ALDER lives in Devon, England, with her husband and son. When not drawing chickens or dogs, Charlie can be found in her studio drinking coffee, arranging her crayons, and inventing more accidental animal heroes. She also illustrates the Doggo and Pupper series by Katherine Applegate.

  Sports Reporter

  Likes nothing more than racing around the park.

  Travel Reporter

  Reporting in from the train station.

  Style Reporter

  Lives at the hair salon and has great beauty tips.

  Editor-in-Chief

  Started the very first newspaper for dogs!

  Weather Reporter

  Her nose always knows when rain is coming.

  Lead Reporter

  Knows everyone in Puddle and has her nose to the ground.

  BLOOMSBURY CHILDREN’S BOOKS

  Bloomsbury Publishing Inc., part of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

  1385 Broadway, New York, NY 10018

  This electronic edition published in 2022 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

  BLOOMSBURY, BLOOMSBURY CHILDREN’S BOOKS, and the Diana logo are trademarks of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

  First published in Great Britain in May 2021 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

  Published in the United States of America in January 2022 by Bloomsbury Children’s Books

  Text copyright © 2021 by Laura James

  Illustrations copyright © 2021 by Charlie Alder

  All rights reserved

  You may not copy, distribute, transmit, reproduce or otherwise make available this publication (or any part of it) in any form, or by any means (including without limitation electronic, digital, optical, mechanical, photocopying, printing, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

  Bloomsbury books may be purchased for business or promotional use. For information on bulk purchases please contact Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at [email protected]

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Names: James, Laura, 1979- author. | Alder, Charlie, illustrator.

  Title: The puppy problem / by Laura James ; illustrated by Charlie Alder.

  Description: New York : Bloomsbury, 2022. | Series: The Daily Bark | Audience: Ages 7-10. | Audience: Grades 2-3. |

  Summary: Gizmo the city dog moves to the village of Puddle with his journalist human and helps his new neighbor Jilly find homes for her puppies by starting a newspaper.

  Identifiers: LCCN 2021026256 (print) | LCCN 2021026257 (e-book)

  ISBN: 978-1-5476-0881-2 (HB)

  ISBN: 978-1-5476-0880-5 (PB)

  ISBN: 978-1-5476-0952-9 (eBook)

  ISBN: 978-1-5476-0953-6 (ePDF)

  Subjects: CYAC: Dogs—Fiction. | Animals—Infancy—Fiction. | Newspapers—Fiction.

  Classification: LCC PZ7.1.J385 Pu 2022 (print) | LCC PZ7.1.J385 (e-book) | DDC [Fic]—dc23

  LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021026256

  LC e-book record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021026257

  To find out more about our authors and their books please visit www.bloomsbury.com where you will find extracts, author interviews and details of forthcoming events, and to be the first to hear about latest releases and special offers, sign up for our newsletters.

 

 

  Laura James, The Puppy Problem

 

 

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