Robin Gow’s Gooseberry is a moving middle-grade novel about a young nonbinary person searching for family and finding it with a sweet rescue dog.
There’s a lot twelve-year-old B doesn’t know—like what their new name should be after coming out as nonbinary. Or what it would feel like to finally feel at home after moving around to different foster families for years. But there’s one thing B does know: they want to be a dog trainer when they grow up. And when they meet Gooseberry—a feisty stray dog who seems as wary of strangers as B does—B feels an instant connection. With Gooseberry, B could have everything they want: a family of their own, and a dog to train. And B’s newest foster parents agree to let B adopt him.
But training a dog isn’t as easy as B expected. Gooseberry is anxious and barely lets B pet him, let alone train him. Will Gooseberry ever feel at ease with B? And how can B teach Gooseberry to trust, when they know so little about trust themself?
Gooseberry is a heartwarming story by the acclaimed author of Dear Mothman about finding family, finding hope, and—most of all—finding and accepting yourself.
Praise
***STARRED REVIEW***
"Gow’s latest middle-grade novel (Dear Mothman, 2023) continues delving into the intersection of transgender or nonbinary identities with autistic and ADHD neurodivergence, and while B thinks no one would be able to understand their brain, autistic readers especially will find much that is both relatable and validating."
—Booklist
***STARRED REVIEW***
"B’s struggle to find home and acceptance will have readers rooting for them and Gooseberry the dog. A must-purchase realistic fiction title for all middle grade collections."
—School Library Journal
"B’s search for self-identity is artfully written..."
—Publishers Weekly
"A sensitive exploration of autism, gender identity, and dog training."
—Kirkus
