As we would expect from a middle grade novel, changing friendships is a central issue. We also take on gentrification, racism, and mental illness. That could easily be too much for any novel much less one for this age group but Negron handles it well. It helps that the characters are strong. They read like real kids, their relationships with their peers and with adults realistic and genuine. While the details aren't especially relatable (not a lot of kids have an interest in public policy) the overall thrust of the plot is engaging.

Mortimer has been struggling with anxiety after he sees his dog, Trevor, struck by a car and killed and his elderly neighbor Ms. Opal had to move into assisted living. Mortimer gives up his dog walking business until a new girl moves into town and starts a rival dog walking business. Mortimer and his friends end up getting involved in neighborhood issues, including a plan for developing a vacant lot. Overall, I really enjoyed this one and it is a great middle grade book.

A heartfelt journey where Mortimer Bray navigates through the challenges of change, grief, and community in Townsend Heights. Struggling after the loss of his much-loved dog, Mortimer finds solace in the company of other pets. As his neighborhood undergoes unsettling transformations, Mortimer senses a connection to the vacant lot, believing its secret history holds the key to preventing further unraveling. Dealing with heavy subjects, this beautiful and heartwarming tale explores themes of grief, community, and the power of learning from the past to create a better future. The cover may have drawn me in with its charm, but the dogs and the touching narrative are what make Underdog City a must-read. For dog lovers and anyone seeking inspiration, this book is a delightful recommendation!

I'm sure this will be a fine book, but I definitely will not have time to get to the story before the archive date happens, in which case I will not be able to give my feedback. That would negatively impact my response ratio, which is not good, as I already missed out on giving feedback on so many books because this year has been so absolutely busy and stressful that I have not had the time nor mental capacity to get to many of these books before they are gone forever! It is as upsetting for both sides. I apologize, but I will do better for the future! I am appreciative that I have been giving access to so many great new releases.

Dealing with grief after the death of his beloved dog, the main character seeks solace with other pets. Around him, life is changing for the worst, but he tries to help save his community which helps both him and others.

This is another wonderful and well written book by Chris Negron. It's a heartfelt story about pets and what a difference it makes when a community works together.

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Mortimer Bray used to enjoy his neighborhood of Townsend Heights, where his lawyer mother is a councilwoman, but the last year has been tough. His father, a science teacher, has started taking apart a lot of small appliances, thinking he can "fix" them. A beloved elderly neighbor, Ms. Opal, fell and broke a hip and had to move to assisted living. Mortimer hasn't been in touch with her because he feels guilty. He also feels guilty about what happened to his dog, Trevor, who ran away from him on a walk and was hit by a car. This impacts his dog walking business, which he has handed over to his best friend, Frankie, since he doesn't feel capable of continuing with it. There are new neighbors in Ms. Opal's house, the Cortez family, who are at odds with the other neighbors, especially the Brewsters, because they have a rooster that wakes everyone up each morning. When the Cortez' granddaughter, Will, spends the summer with them, she starts a rival dog walking business. Even though he is no longer in the business, Mortimer feels like he should help out his friend Frankie and find out what is going on. He and Will start an tentative friendship, and start delving into neighborhood issues, mainly because of the problems the family is facing because of the rooster, Gustavo, as well as some prejudice because the grandparents have come from Puerto Rico. They find out that Mr. Brewster has some plans to buy an empty lot and build a development called Brewster Station. He claims that it will raise property values, provide needed businesses, and generally improve the neighborhood, but Mortimer has his doubts. He finally visits Ms. Opal, because he can remember that she always reacted strongly to the vacant lot, and he finds that she has deep ties to decades old "urban renewal" that negatively impacted her family as well as the entire neighborhood. Is Mr. Brewster using his project to cover up a similar building project that might decimate Mortimer's neighborhood? When Frankie gets him some secret information that ties in with Ms. Opal's historical perspective, he and Will feel that they need to go to the council to protest. Given Mortimer's anxiety, will he be able to get up and address the group to let them know what's going on in order to save his community, especially since his mother seems to be supporting Mr. Brewster?
Strengths: Townsend Heights sounds like an interesting neighborhood, and Mortimer's investment in it is an unusal example of Kids Doing Things. I appreciated that he was willing to get to know Will and became friends with her, instead of relying on the middle grade trope disliking neighborhood interlopers. The Cortez family's history, and their reasons for having a rooster, were interesting, although I'm not sure how well a rooster would go over in my neighborhood! The trauma of losing his dog, and the guilt Mortimer feels, are understandable. Ms. Opal is a great character, and her family history in Townsend Heights was so interesting that I wish Mortimer had visited her a lot earlier. The parents were some of the better middle grade ones I've seen; briefly but fully developed as humans with their own issues, supportive of Mortimer but annoying in various ways, and ultimately there for Mortimer. The friendships with Will and Frankie also made sense. This is a great example of the type of realistic fiction that I'd love to see published more, since it's the kind of title apt to be purchased for literature circles and class discussion sets.
Weaknesses: The council meeting scene at the end of the book had a lot of information about the neighborhood history, as well as a lot of description about Mortimer's anxiety. The history would have been better presented spread throughout the book, and the entire scene tightened up a bit.
What I really think: While I enjoyed this author's Dan Unmasked and The Last Super Chef, they haven't circulated as much as I had hoped, mainly due to the longer length. Underdog City seems a bit shorter, and has a fantastic cover. I've added a copy to my list to purchase, and will hand it to fans of Fairbairn and Assarasakorn's Paws graphic novel series, Hoyle's Just Gus, Finnegan's New Kids and Underdogs, or Benedis-Grab, Daphne. Army Brats.

I 100% picked this up because of the cover and I am so glad I was drawn in by the dogs. This book was beautiful and heartwarming. This book deals with some very heavy subjects but it does so in a beautiful and easy to understand way. I definitely recommend this one to all you dog lovers!

A heartwarming and inspirational book as we find Mortimer faced with sadness over the loss of his dog, his friend Frankie wanting his help with their dog walking business, and then finding new neighbor, Will, also walks dogs. Ms. Opal, Mortimer’s friend, isn’t around so nothing feels the same. When Mr. Brewster, a neighbor, brings a town proposal to his mom, the council manager, Mortimer begins to worry. Could it affect their community? Could this proposal want their homes? Mortimer seeks out Ms. Opal which gives him an idea. Mortimer gets his new neighbor,Will, to help. Mortimer decides to speak out at the town council meeting. He tells the town what he thinks Mr. Brewster will do. Will the town go with Mr. Brewster’s idea or with Mortimer’s?