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Overview
Pumpkin: The Raccoon Who Thought She Was a Dog is a sweet, unique look at an adorable household pet, captured in gorgeous, never-before-seen photographs in luxurious settings. Pumpkin’s message is that friendship and love can be found in the most unlikely of companions. With a lot of personality, and a little bit of mischief, Pumpkin will capture hearts all around the world.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781250108982 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | St. Martin's Publishing Group |
| Publication date: | 10/04/2016 |
| Pages: | 160 |
| Sales rank: | 1,157,020 |
| Product dimensions: | 7.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.70(d) |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
Pumpkin
The Raccoon Who Thought She Was A Dog
By Laura Young
St. Martin's Press
Copyright © 2016 Laura YoungAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-250-10898-2
INTRODUCTION
This is the story of an orphaned Bahamian raccoon called Pumpkin and her two best friends, Toffee and Oreo. Pumpkin is an island girl through and through but, unlike her wild cousins, she prefers to remain indoors. She enjoys air-conditioning, leftover tea every now and then, and feasting away on sunny-side up eggs. Her story is unique because not only does she reside in the Bahamas, but she also has decided to make Toffee and Oreo her lifelong friends, her sisters, mothers even.
Toffee and Oreo are dogs, "potcakes," to be precise, a Bahamian term used to describe "mutts." No one really knows why they are called potcakes, and there are many different theories, mine being that they would eat leftover local Johnnycake bread from the pot. My husband, Will, and I found these two sisters on the side of the road when they were only eight weeks old. They had a rough start into the world and were in horrendous condition. Toffee had been hit by a car and had sustained a broken hip and a shattered knee, while Oreo had been badly beaten. We knew instantly that they were meant to be with us and we did everything we could to get them healthy and happy. It wasn't long before the two settled into their comfortable new lives, and they are now the madams of the house.
Pumpkin came along nearly six years later, in October 2014, after a very unusually windy week in the Bahamas. The little raccoon fell out of a tree in my parents', Rosie and Peter's, backyard when she was only one month old and suffered a broken leg. When the mother didn't return, every effort was made to ensure that the tiny creature would have a fighting chance. With the help of friends and vets, we took her in.
In the first few days of her new life, she lived with a family that had cared for injured raccoons before, and that is where a little girl called Molly thoughtfully named her Pumpkin. We never looked back.
Every day Pumpkin grew stronger and braver, and when she met Toffee and Oreo, they developed an instant bond. The dogs watched over and protected her, and it wasn't long before Pumpkin began to follow her two new friends everywhere, never wanting to leave their sides. It was a surprise to all of us to see these three misfits form such a beautiful connection.
Oreo is like the mother, cuddling her and scolding her when she has had enough of Pumpkin's bad behavior. She babied Pumpkin from the start and even tried to nurse her at one stage. Toffee always wants to run around with her or dig her out from under the covers of our bed when she has burrowed. Pumpkin began to act more and more like a dog with each passing day, preferring to stay on the ground like her sisters and copying everything else that they did! They are three very special animals, and I smile every day now that we are a family.
Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that people would take to Pumpkin and her daily adventures the way they have. I started posting pictures on Instagram as a way for friends and family to follow her progress and see how well she was fitting in at her new home. It has been exciting and eye-opening to see her character develop and her bond with the two dogs grows stronger each day. What makes her little story so special is the way that these unlikely friends have formed an incredible relationship, and it shows that you can find love in the most unexpected places.
My hope is that you read this book and it gives you the warmth and happiness that it gave me to put all of my favorite pictures of Pumpkin, Toffee, and Oreo together. I hope that you are able to take away the following:
At the end of the day we aren't so different from each other, and if a raccoon and two dogs can become friends, then we, too, can have compassion and love for anyone, no matter how different they may seem.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Pumpkin by Laura Young. Copyright © 2016 Laura Young. Excerpted by permission of St. Martin's Press.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Contents
Title Page,Copyright Notice,
Dedication,
Acknowledgements,
Introduction,
Begin Reading,
Conclusion,
Letter from the Bahamas Humane Society,
About the Author,
Copyright,