posted on 11 May 2018

McTavish Goes Wild by Meg Rosoff illustrated by Grace Easton

This is the second book to feature the rescue(d) dog, McTavish and the family he now lives with, The Peacheys. McTavish takes his role as the family guardian, organiser and general overseer seriously and that’s a duty it’s easy to sympathise with when you see the eccentricity and general chaos he lives amongst.

Pa Peachey is completely obsessed by the idea that everything in the world is out to get him; Ollie, the son, is only interested in discos, girls and how he looks; daughter, Ava wont do anything or go anywhere without a philosophy text book. Only Ma Peachey and youngest daughter, Betty are sensible enough for McTavish to trust to make decisions.

So when it rolls around time to decide about where the family summer holiday should be spent, the chances of getting agreement seems remote. When Betty suggests they should go camping, of course it causes mayhem. But Ma Peachey has happy memories of camping in the countryside and she sides with Betty and they both get on with organising the others – despite their constant quibbling. McTavish, naturally, loves the idea.

Eventually they find themselves putting up the tent and everything is turning out better than could have been imagined – until it starts raining…and raining…and raining. When the sun reasserts itself Pa, Ollie and Ava want to go home and yet another round of quibbling begins until they suddenly realise McTavish has gone missing.

This sparks a frantic search that leads the family over hills, around lakes, through fields until everyone starts to rumble that McTavish might not actually be lost but he does in fact have his own plan…..

Meg Rosoff is not only a superb writer but she’s also a well-known dog lover and in McTavish she’s created an endearing character that allows us to view the foibles of his human companions in a gently satirical way. This is a book full of the bright airiness of the summers of our childhood and it’s a story children will love to read on their own as well as with an adult. And, as a bonus, at the end of the story there are some nice little extras – a summary of the Countryside Code, a checklist for camping essentials, a profile of the author and a little pen portrait of the dog that inspired McTavish.

The book is published by Barrington Stoke in their ‘Conkers’ series  ‘books that celebrate the very special alchemy that is interwoven word and picture.’ This is entirely appropriate because the illustrations by Grace Easton provide a wonderful addition to the texture of the book. Most of the illustrations are full page and in a style that reminded me of a mix of Oliver Jeffers and Laura Carlin – which is no bad thing to be in my view.

Terry Potter

May 2018

 

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