Lubar, David. Dog days

Lubar, David. Dog days. Darby Creek, 2004 [1-58196-025-5]
Larry loves baseball and also stray dogs. This summer he currently has three that he is trying to find a home for but the cost of dog food keeps going up. He has to pay for it because his parents cn barely pay the bills. Larry is always looking for ways to earn money with chores, etc. One day Paul,. his little brother, pulls Larry off the baseball field because he found a dog in an alley with "blood on the wall." When they arrive, there is red stuff on the wall and the dog growls at Larry which is weird because most dogs love him. Over the next few days while Larry is looking for new ways to pay for dog food, they go by the alley and sometimes find the growling dog with fresh spots on the wall and sometimes he is not there. What is with the dog? What are the reoccurring stains on the wall? Will Larry end up taking in a new dog? If so, how can he pay for the food? I only purchased this easy 78 page book because I like the author's writing. It could be used for high interest/low level reading since Larry's age is not mentioned.