The Staffordshire Terror

This gripping novel, set in 1970’s California, involves a girl’s love for her pet and the netherworld of fighting dogs for sport. A sport that sadly continues today.

Cissie Rose finds a tiny puppy she names Spook on the highway. Unweaned, he needs Cissie’s help to survive, and she loves him instantly. Until Cissie does a report on Spook for school, the Roses have no idea that is is a purebred Staffordshire terrier, a breed with a centuries-old fighting heritage. But Spook’s potential for pit fighting is recognized immediately by Cissie’s no-good Uncle Cletus, and when the dog disappears after Cletus quarrels with the family, there is little doubt as to who is responsible. Getting Spook back becomes Cissie’s obsession, and by the time she succeeds both she and the Staffordshire have discovered the cruelties of dog fighting at first hand.

Poignant and thought-provoking, this unusual story holds the reader riveted from its dramatic beginning all the way to its satisfying conclusion. It is another winner from a master storyteller.