What's better than being best friends? Being best friends who volunteer together at the Roxbury Park Dog Shelter! With a focus on friendship, family, and cute canines, Roxbury Park Dog Club is perfect for tween readers who snap up books from series like Cupcake Diaries and Candy Apple, or for anyone who loves dogs. This second book focuses on Sasha, who has always wanted a pet. There's only one problem: her mom doesn't think she's responsible enough. Sasha knows she can be forgetful sometimes, but after weeks of volunteering at the Roxbury Park Dog Shelter with her friends Kim and Taylor, she's sure she can convince her mom she's ready to take care of a pet. But then the newest dog in the girls' after-school dog care program turns out to be too rambunctious to manage. How can Sasha prove she's responsible if she can't get one problem puppy under control? Middle Grade Friendship: Sasha, Kim, and Taylor are best friends who volunteer together, but can their friendship handle the pressure when Sasha’s big chance is on the line? - Learning Responsibility: Sasha is determined to prove to her mom she’s ready for a pet. But when a problem puppy proves too much to handle, her dream might be over before it begins. - An Animal Shelter Story: Set in the bustling Roxbury Park Dog Shelter, this story is filled with cute, cuddly, and sometimes challenging rescue dogs. - A Heartwarming Series for Kids: Fans of sweet, friendship-focused series like Cupcake Diaries and Candy Apple will fall in love with the Roxbury Park Dog Club. Gr 3-6-This new series begins with simultaneous releases of the first two books featuring best friends and dog enthusiasts Kim, Sasha, and Taylor. Mission Impawsible is presented from "dog whisperer" Kim's point of view. The seventh-grade girls are assigned volunteer work after school a few days each week and find a perfect opportunity in a failing dog shelter. With some creativity, dedication, and very hard work, Kim learns she has the ability to engender real change as she and her friends establish the Roxbury Park Dog Club to save the shelter. When the Going Gets Ruff is presented from Sasha's point of view. Sasha is determined to prove to her mother that she is responsible enough to have her very own pet, but everything she tries goes wrong. When Sasha briefly loses a dog from the Dog Club, she is certain she's done for. Ultimately, however, she learns the true meaning of responsibility-with a little help from her friends-and might just find her perfect furry companion. While well paced and engaging, these series starters are unfortunately unremarkable. The Dog Club's problems are slight, and conflicts resolve easily. Reminiscent of Ann M. Martin's "The Baby-Sitters Club" series (Scholastic) but with less substance, these titles don't offer anything new to the pet-fiction genre. However, if readers are hungry for more friendship and doggy reads, this series might be worth the venture. VERDICT Strictly an additional purchase; recommend for those libraries with readers clamoring for more quick, dog-themed reads.-Taylor Worley, Springfield Public Library, ORα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.