Product Description
Cracker is one of the United States Army’s most valuable weapons: a German shepherd trained to sniff out bombs, traps, and the enemy. The fate of entire platoons rests on her keen sense of smell. She’s a Big Deal, and she likes it that way. Sometimes Cracker remembers when she was younger, and her previous owner would feed her hot dogs and let her sleep in his bed. That was nice, too.
Rick Hanski is headed to Vietnam. There, he’s going to whip the world and prove to his family and his sergeant–and everyone else who didn’t think he was cut out for war–wrong. But sometimes Rick can’t help but wonder that maybe everyone else is right. Maybe he should have just stayed at home and worked in his dad’s hardware store.
When Cracker is paired with Rick, she isn’t so sure about this new owner. He’s going to have to prove himself to her before she’s going to prove herself to him. They need to be friends before they can be a team, and they have to be a team if they want to get home alive.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 5.0 based on 18 reviews)

Another point of view about the Vietnam War

This different view of the Vietnam War is filled with adventure, the danger, and the hardwork on the part of a young soldier and a German Shepard. The author's method of telling the story from two points of view adds to the knowledge of the war experience. What a surprise to learn that the dogs were not brought home again after their time in Vietnam! Luckily Cracker's fate was positively different.
May 11, 2008

Cracker

This is book for children. I should have known this because Kadohata has written several children's books (Newberry Award on some of them) and the story line is appropriate for children, not deep enough for adults. The happy ending, although I'm not sure it could have happened that way considering the rules that the military enforced at that time (Vietnam War), could only be appropriate for children.

The rules have changed since this book was written, though, and I wonder if the change of rules would have made for any kind of story compelling enough to write a book about.
February 28, 2008

GREAT

For a kid that has dyslexia this was a wonderful buy. He is beginning to love to read again... And this book helped.

February 22, 2008

Great Book!

I got this book for my 11 year old after he requested it at a book fair where they wanted 5.40 more for it and was thrilled to find it less here. Although, when I got it I figured it was a kids book, I found that after picking it up out of curiousity I enjoyed it too. The switching between the soldier and the dog thoughts are very smooth and the portrayal of a soldier and his relationship with a K9 I felt was pretty much dead-on. I like that they portrayed an era of history with a story but still stuck to reality. Happy Reading!
January 06, 2008

Great War Dog Story

Cracker is a terrific story about one of the unsung heroes of the Vietnam War, namely the K9's. It's great the way the author has written from both the soldier and the dog's point of view. It's also great to see that war dogs are finally getting some attention. This book also introduces the Vietnam War to a new generation of kids. The war and the dogs that saved so many lives should never be forgotten. Anyone interested in another war dog historical fiction--this time a World War II real war dog hero should try Chips a Hometown Hero. Chips: A Hometown Hero Both of these books are great for any dog lover's collection!
January 04, 2008

SIMILAR PRODUCTS

The Wednesday Wars
by Gary D. Schmidt

The Mysterious Benedict Society
by Trenton Lee Stewart
by Carson Ellis

The Invention of Hugo Cabret
by Brian Selznick

Red Moon at Sharpsburg
by Rosemary Wells

Weedflower
by Cynthia Kadohata