Greyfriars Bobby is set in Edinburgh, surprisingly a place which Eleanor Atkinson never visited. A vivid, heart-warming animal story, based on a true account, Greyfriars Bobby tells of a devoted Skye terrier, who stays faithfully by his master, even after death.

Introduction, Greyfriars Bobby, Penguin Popular Classics

Just for fun, I’m reading books this year from my library and elsewhere whose authors’ names begin with A. Greyfriars Bobby was a book I acquired somewhere(?), and I only knew it was a dog story. I’m not much of an animal person, so I wasn’t sure I would enjoy the story very much. But I thought I’d give it a try.

Well, I do recommend the book quite highly—with a couple of caveats. For those of you who don’t mind spoilers, the dog does NOT die, until the very end of the story when he has attained a good life and a good old age, for a dog. There is another heart-rending death, though, within the first few chapters of the book, the death of an old man, not of the dog. So, reader beware.

Also, the dialog in the book is almost all in Scottish dialect. My copy had some helpful footnotes that translated some of the Scottish words and phrases: inglenuek, ilka, nicht, siller, sonsie, leal, fule. But other terms were left to the reader to puzzle out. It would be hard going for anyone who was totally unfamiliar with the language of Scotland.

Still, I think the story is well worth the trauma and the language detective work. Greyfriars Bobby is a little dog, or a “bit dog” as the men call him in the book, but he has a big personality and a winning charm. After the death of his master, Bobby becomes a dog-about-Edinburgh, a dog with no master. He’s also a dog with a mission, a mission he stays faithful to for the rest of his natural life.

The book would make a good read aloud for the whole family. It was supposedly written for adults, but children would enjoy it with a little help from an adult reader with the dialect and the somewhat ornate and antiquated language. I think families with some Scots heritage would especially take to the story and would get a taste of Edinburgh and its history as well. Also, if you’re at all interested in dog stories that are heroic, not tragic . . .

Greyfriars Bobby (May 4, 1855 – January 14, 1872) was a Skye Terrier who became known in 19th-century Edinburgh for spending 14 years guarding the grave of his owner until he died himself on 14 January 1872. The story continues to be well known in Scotland, through several books and films. A prominent commemorative statue and nearby graves are a tourist attraction.

from Wikipedia

There’s also a picture book by Ruth Brown that tells an abbreviated version of the story of Greyfriars Bobby. And there are at least a couple of movies based on Bobby’s story, one by Disney. Take your pick, but I’d suggest at least trying Atkinson’s novel first, as long as you’re ready for a full length dog novel.