Making Friends with MaggieMooseTracks

Maggie is a puppy with an unusual physical feature: she was born with a set of tiny moose antlers right alongside her soft puppy ears. As the smallest of her litter, Maggie never feels left out; her mom does all she can to make sure that Maggie understands how precious and special she really is. But can her mom’s reassurances sustain her when big changes happen in her life?

MaggieMooseTracks: Making Friends is the endearing story of a puppy who finds herself on an unexpected adventure, meeting friends and facing challenges along the way. Like many classic adventure stories for kids, MaggieMooseTracks begins with the main character travelling away from her home and family. In this story, Maggie has to leave the farm where she was born in order to be adopted and start a new life with a human family. But the trip to her new residence doesn’t go at all as planned; a tricky crate latch and a bumpy truck ride deliver Maggie straight into life in the wilderness, and that’s just the beginning of the surprises to come.

One thing parents and children will notice about MaggieMooseTracks: Making Friends is the large cast of characters. Usually, books for grade-school-age kids try and keep the character list to a minimum in order to make it easier for youngsters to keep track of who’s who, but the MaggieMooseTracks series trusts kids to keep up with the many friends who pop in and out of the main character’s life. In addition to Maggie’s original farm family, there are also her prospective adoptive humans and a host of animals like Alfonso the alligator, Flint the cat, Kevin the coyote, and many more.

Each character is interesting in his or her own way, and they each serve their own role in helping Maggie cope with the chaos around her. At first, Maggie is a little bit afraid of these new people and animals in her life, and not without good reason; some of the animals are a bit intimidating, but she comes to realize that while they are not perfect, they all have something to offer and teach her.

Along with this lesson, there’s also the obvious message of self-esteem and appreciation for one’s own special gifts and talents. Maggie’s moose antlers make it apparent that she’s not the everyday puppy, but she doesn’t let that stop her from reaching out to others or having a good time, and those she meets seem to pick up on and reflect her confidence.

There are elements of traditional spirituality in the book as well. For example, Kevin the Coyote is a holistic healer who uses his skills to help Maggie when she has an unfortunate run-in with a porcupine. At the end of the book, Maggie meets some additional “friends” who have helped guide her along the way. They are moose who appear in transparent form, and it’s suggested they represent her soul or spirit.

The writing in MaggieMooseTracks is simple enough for its target audience yet engaging enough so that kids will remain interested in the story. It has some cute illustrations, but it is a chapter book, making it a great transitional read for young ones who are moving from picture books to more complicated material.

Author Mari Campbell was struck with the idea for Maggie Moosetracks while observing her own real-life English Springer Spaniel, Maggie. While the real-life Maggie doesn’t have moose antlers, she has a big heart and adventurous approach to life that’s sure to be the inspiration for many more books to come. Mari hopes that her books will encourage kids to explore reading and to embrace their own uniqueness.

Learn more about Mari and Maggie at www.maggiemoosetracks.com