Rocky is a delightful creation. Like many other adolescent characters invented by Paulsen, she has an exquisite sense of the weird. Her initial meeting with the dog who will become her fast friend is a fine example. The dog's most obvious characteristic is his manginess, a trait that self-doubting Rocky easily identifies with. Yet when the dog steals and skillfully swallows a chicken whole, she remembers a snake in the circus sideshow which fed the same way. Rocky, whose own nickname is surprising for a girl, delights in the incongruity of naming a desperate canine for a sleek reptile. Similarly, Rocky nicknames her favorite nun at the orphanage from an unexpected source: "Gene Autry" after an early cowboy movie star.

As Rocky's mentor, Mick shares her sense of the weird; he is a skillfully crafted foil and complement. When the two interact, the results are wonderThe...