Maxi’s Secrets (Or, What You Can Learn from a Dog) by Lynn Plourde

Some dogs teach you to sit and stay. Maxi teaches you how to be a bigger, better person.

When a BIG, lovable, does-it-her-way dog wiggles her way into the heart of a loudmouth pipsqueak of a boy, wonderful things start to happen. This one’s perfect for fans of Wonder and Because of Winn-Dixie.

Here’s the story. Timminy knows that moving to a new town just in time to start middle school—when you’re perfect bully bait—is less than ideal. But he gets a great consolation prize in Maxi, a gentle giant of a dog the family quickly discovers is deaf.

Timminy is determined to help Maxi. After all, his parents didn’t return her just because she was a runt. But when the going gets rough (and there’s a fair amount of getting shoved into lockers), it turns out Maxi is the one who ends up helping him.

So does their neighbor Abby, who doesn’t let her blindness define her—and who has no patience for Timminy’s “poor-me” attitude. Slowly, Timminy learns there’s more to everyone than what shows on the surface. To Abby. To Maxi. And even to himself.

It’s a warm, funny, big-hearted read for young readers (ages 5-9) navigating friendship, difference, and the messy business of growing up.

The kind of book you finish and then hand straight to someone you love. Pull up a chair, listen to the sea air rattle the windows, and settle in with this one.

We think it’ll earn a permanent spot on your shelf.

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