*spoiler warning*

I read this book at the perfect time, having just gotten a puppy of my own. Thankfully, I doubt I was ever as selfish as Kim was throughout the first half of the book. I understand that having a stay-at-home mom suddenly decide to start working must be a huge change for everyone in the house, but Kim didn't even care about her mom's reasons for doing it. She just kept thinking over and over about how much it inconvienienced *her*, having to watch her little brother and having more responsibilities and such, and even repeatedly wished that her mom would quit the job.
Anyways, the book was a little slow at first, with trying to get a dog, finding some way to hide it, etc etc, but when things started happening... WOW. What ended up happening with Mrs. Mac had me sneaking reading time 'cause I couldn't put it down, and I *never* expected what happened at the end. It really showed how much Kim grew and matured throughout the book. And, as usual with such a wonderful, well-written book, it made me cry. Happy tears. Mostly. ( )