Elf Dog and Owl Head

By M. T. Anderson, Junyi Wu (Illustrator)

A boy and a mysterious dog uncover hidden forest secrets, facing unseen dangers.

3.9/5 Goodreads · 2,335 ratings

240 pages· 39,597 words· Est. 5.5 hour read

$18.99Save 5%

In stock. Also at Amazon or Bookshop.

Bookroo's summary

Clay escapes a stifling home life and a halted world, drawn into the woods by a mysterious dog named Elphinore. Together, they uncover ancient secrets and hidden paths, but lurking dangers threaten to trap them forever. Will Clay find his way back, or will the forest's mysteries consume him?

From the publisher

From the singular imagination of National Book Award winner M. T. Anderson comes a magical adventure about a boy and his dog–or a dog and her boy–and a forest of wonders hidden in plain sight. Clay has had his fill of home life. A global plague has brought the world to a screeching halt, and with little to look forward to but a summer of video-calling friends, vying with annoying sisters for the family computer, and tuning out his parents’ financial worries, he’s only too happy to retreat to the woods. From the moment the elegant little dog with the ornate collar appears like an apparition among the trees, Clay sees something uncanny in her. With this mysterious Elphinore as guide, he’ll glimpse ancient secrets folded all but invisibly into the forest. Each day the dog leads Clay down paths he never knew existed, deeper into the unknown. But they aren’t alone in their surreal adventures. There are traps and terrors in the woods, too, and if Clay isn’t careful, he might stray off the path and lose his way forever. Graced with evocative black-and-white illustrations by Junyi Wu, Elf Dog and Owl Head is heartfelt and exhilarating, wry and poignant, seamlessly merging the fantastic and the familiar in a tale both timely and timeless.