This is a sweet story about Diego and how he found a forever family even though he was a smelly dog. I really enjoyed it.
I received a complimentary copy from BooksGoSocial via NetGalley and was not required to write a review. All opinions expressed are my own.

This book is about a little girl who finds an old, smelly, lost dog whom she names Diego. They take him to the shelter to find a loving home. But as an old dog, he is not the first choice for any family. Eventually mom gives in and lets the little girl keep her old friendly dog. This story is lovely, but nothing special. It’s been done before and done better. The illustrations are nice and help tell the story well, but the formatting screams “self-published”. While that is not a bad thing, it is something that will hinder this story from finding a bigger audience.

Diego the Smelly Dog was a heartfelt story about a girls love for a stray dog and how she and her grandfather show they care for him even though they couldn't keep him at the beginning of the book. Diego is an older dog, not a puppy, and it shows children how some dogs are not adopted as quickly as others due to age.

Reading this book opened my own kids eyes to why adopting a puppy may not always be a good option or the right option. It was a great way to show that all dogs need love and care and a good home.

Recommended ages: 5-10yrs old
#DIEGOTHESMELLYDOG #NetGalley #AGRusso

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

Diego the Smelly Dog is an adorable, heartwarming story about an old dig who follows Ava and her grandpa home one day. The dog is very old and unsure of Ava and her grandpa at first, but soon comes to trust them, and Ava names him Diego. They take him to a rescue centre to be adopted (against Avas protests), but when they visit each week, he hasn't been adopted. Ava longs to take Diego home, and after her mother sees how much Ava loves him and the care she puts into visiting him and walking him each week at the shelter, Ava gets a nice surprise. I love a good animal story, and dogs are my weakness for sure. This is a great book to show children that old dogs can be as loveable as puppies and how much care a dog needs.

I guess there is a market for books showing the simple process of animal adoption – a girl finds a smelly, stray dog, the family put it in the pound and are the only ones interested in it, until they take it out again and look after it themselves. I certainly see several books like that each year. I guess there is also a market for books showing the simple process of animal adoption without the heinous, inbuilt pester power where the reader sees it happen and thinks it appropriate to their situation. In that case, go for this volume as it is rather on the meh side and doesn't suggest it will lead to any strong emotions and the desire to mimic at all.

Cute story! I always do a dog unit with my third grade students, so now I have an additional book to add to the classroom library.

Rescue dogs are the best! Add in the fact that he’s an older fella and it just makes it that much more sweeter. Diego has a resemblance to my rescue, Arnie, with his white stripe between the eyes. My dream is to one day be able to give older dogs a place to live out the rest of their life in a comfortable, loving home.

What I liked:
~ despite his age, and how it’s presumed that he was abandoned, he seems like such a happy dog
~ that although they couldn’t adopt Diego, Ava and Gramps went to the shelter every Saturday to see him and take him on a walk
~ that there were toys in the cages ~ I can’t bare to think they are so lonely with nothing to do while they wait for their furever home
~ the picture of Ava hugging him was so sweet and exactly how my Arnie hugs back
~ how Gramps was sneaky putting the pictures on the refrigerator for Mama to see

About the illustrations by Alona Baulina: (none of which affect my review)
~ the trees looked very realistic
~ the rocking chairs legs looked a little too long and are not scaled properly from picture to picture and one is even missing in some pictures
~ since Diego is a ‘smelly dog’ I liked that some fumes came off of him to really bring that out
~ the cages do not appear to have doors
~ Ava and Gramps have outfit changes, but Dr Jones is wearing the same outfit every time we see her

Side note ~ Ava has a ton of bandaids on her and that’s never addressed and has me curious.

Overall, this was a heartwarming story that was easy to read.

My granddaughter had no problem giving this book a "5" rating. She is obsessed with animals and loves stories about rescuing dogs. Her family has adopted two shelter dogs, one of which was very smelly when they brought him home. This book seemed custom made for her. Thanks to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for a copy to read and review.

Short and sweet for animal loving kiddos. The art work is decent and the storyline is simple for kids to enjoy 2-4 year olds.

This book was just cute and wholesome. The amount of animals that don’t get adopted from homeless shelters each year continues to grow as well as new animals being brought to the shelter. This story showed how a family adopted an old dog they name Diego and welcome him to their home. If you are able to then, adopting or rehoming a pet is always important because shelters can’t take in every animal.

This book tells the story of a lost dog who follows a little girl home. Even though he is smelly and doesn't seem like the perfect house pet, Ava feels bad for the dog and isn't fully on board with taking him to an animal shelter. She and her grandfather go back to the shelter repeatedly and she is always happy to see Diego, and he is happy to see her too. There is a nice happy ending, but the story shows what it really is like for animal shelters who have senior dogs and limited adopters. It has an important message while also being a heartwarming and feel good story. I think young readers will enjoy this book and would recommend it for animal lovers in the age 5-10 range. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for giving me the chance to read and review this book!

A little girl and her grandfather find an old, smelly, stray dog and clean him up. Her mother does not want a dog so they must take the dog to the local shelter. But the little girl is persistent, going to the shelter to visit and take the dog for walks. The mother notices her dedication and decides to allow her to have the dog.

Stories with grandparent/grandchild relationships are always some of my favorites and need to be in more books! I enjoyed seeing the grandfather encourage the granddaughter and cheer her on without contradicting the mother's wishes.

Based solely on the title, I expected this to be a silly, cute children’s book. It was so much more. In fact, it ended with me in happy tears.

This is a well-worded, child-friendly book about a found dog, a wonderful animal shelter, and a sweet child/Abuelo relationship. I found the pictures cute and colorful, and the story full of kindness.

Big thanks to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for granting me access to a digital ARC, as well as the author, A.G. Russo, for a lovely story.

This is a sad book with a happy ending! The story of an old stray smelly dog who gets taken to the animal shelter and a girl who names the dog Diego and wants the dog to live with her family – although it does have a happy end and the dog gets to come and live with the girl, it takes an unnecessarily long time. Coming from a household with adopted pets, it made my child wonder why, why did it take so many weeks for the girl’s grandpa to agree to take the dog home. I guess what matters is that the story does have a happy ending, and it does get the point across that any stray and shelter animal can be adopted, it just felt kind of cruel to leave the poor dog (not smelly anymore) in the shelter for weeks for no real reason. It could be just me, though. This aside, the book is a beautiful one. the drawings are cute. The story is written in an easy and engaging way.

This was a cute book about a stray dog and a little girl who wants to take care of him. This dog who the little girl names Diego follows her and her grandpa home one day and he's smelly. She gives him a bath and takes him to the dog shelter but no on wants to adopt him because he's an older dog. She goes to visit him every week and he's still there. Finally the people at the shelter tell her they are transferring him somewhere else because no one has shown any interest in him. The girl wants him so much but her mother said they can't afford a pet. She starts drawing pictures of him and putting them up so her mom can see them. Maybe she'll change her mind? This story was a cute one with a happy ending and children who love dogs would enjoy this one!

I loved this sweet, sweet story. Who doesn't love a story about a dog, even if he is smelly!! It's such a great adoption story about the way he found his forever home. A very uplifting read for kids and the illustrations are so cute.

The book has a good premise, but the word choice makes it feel stilted. The pictures are oddly angular which is exactly opposite of what you would expect in a book about love and belonging. For reference- Wicked Witch of the West: pointy. Good Witch of the North: rounded.

The art was pretty strange but the story was very sweet and seemed so realistic. So often we try to help animals in need, and end up becoming their new family, even when we didn't intend to be!

Sweet book about a dog, who happens to be smelly, and how he finds an unexpected home. Nice, life affirming, gentle book, fun to read, wonderfully written and illustrated.