Dorothea Kathleen Tanner, aka Dodi, stars in a girl-meets-dog chapter book that's hilarious, entertaining, poignant . . . but not highfalutin.

Eight-year-old Dodi lives in a Texas trailer park that's pretty darn close to the middle of nowhere. Her only companions are three troublemaking brothers. When a mongrel shows up in her yard and fixes her with his black marbly eyes, Dodi thinks he's the bestest friend anyone could ask for. She dubs him Prince-but he's also Trouble with a capital T.

Whether he's digging up petunias or tracking mud onto the mean old neighbor's patio, Prince seems to be trying to land in the pound. How can Dodi keep Prince out of mischief?

Narrated in an endearing country twang, this superbly crafted, big- hearted novel gives readers a plucky heroine-and a lovable doggy hero-with charm enough to fill the state of Texas.

Illustrated by Jacqueline Rogers.