For Kids: K9 Mattis On the Job - A Day in the Life of a Police Dog. Educational, community building and based on the real life of a working dog.
* I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. All thoughts are my own and I was not required to write a positive review.
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Picture Book · dogs with jobs · Community
K9 Mattis On the Job
A day in the life of a police dog
By Mark Tappan (Author), Donald Wu (Illustrator)
Published by Tommy Nelson
ABOUT THIS BOOK:
Ages 4- 8
Meet Mattis, a K9 police dog who loves helping people and fighting crime alongside his partner, Sergeant Mark. Learn what Mattis's favorite part of the day is as he follows scent trails, tracks down missing items, and performs his official police work. K9 Mattis on the Job from author and police sergeant Mark Tappan will captivate kids as they discover what a day in the life of a German shepherd police dog is all about.
Real-life hero Mattis the K9 officer first captured America's hearts on A&E's America's Top Dog and at school visits across the country. Now, through this fun story based on Mattis's official police work, kids will find out what this pup loves to do each day, from driving to the police station in the morning (okay, Sergeant Mark does most of the driving) to training with the other officers to using his super sniffer to find missing items! But can you guess what Mattis's favorite part of the day is?
My Thoughts:
Our family couldn’t love this little book more! As pet lovers, with a five year old Paw Patrol enthusiast in our midst, this fun picture book was a delight to read. Our daughter enjoyed the story, the vibrant, animated illustrations and the fact that this book focused on the story of a working dog.
As a parent, I enjoyed that this book centered on the heart of local police - protecting, serving and building community. I loved that the story and characterizations are based on real life heroes - Sgt. Mark Tappan and K9 Mattis from the Alpharetta, GA. Each page held fun little facts about K9 Mattis and his service, his unique abilities and his training. The story was educational, encouraging and cute!
The book is a great size, not too big, but also not small. The pages are large, sturdy and the illustrations are fantastic - bringing the story and K9 Mattis’s joy to life.
This book would be a great addition to any child’s library - home, school or public library!
Note for my readers: While this book does not contain any faith-based elements, it heavily focuses on community and as such, is encouraging and uplifting.
FOR THE ADULT READER:
A multifaceted look at perhaps the most famous police dog out there, A Dog Named Mattis is both a spirutual exploration of God's lessons, and a detailed look at the life of a police dog and his human partner.
Sergeant Mark Tappan shares the twelve lessons he's learned from his amazing K9 partner Mattis, whose heroic actions will remind readers to live courageously, serve selflessly, and love passionately because every human (and dog) has a purpose.
Sergeant Mark Tappan shares a unique bond with his K9 partner Mattis—one of the most decorated police K9s of all time—and knew from the first time they interacted that this dog was something special. As a man of deep faith, Mark also knew that God's most profound teaching often comes through the most unexpected sources—and he soon realized that Mattis was about to teach him a lot about building bridges and serving selflessly.
In A Dog Named Mattis, Mark shares the twelve life lessons he's learned from working with Mattis—such as, go all in, address your weaknesses, and listen first—and encourages others to apply those same principles to their own lives. Readers will also discover what kind of training police dogs and their handlers must go through, how a police dog is tested and selected, and understand the lengths a dog will go to in order to complete his mission. Through first-hand accounts of bravery and service, readers will
discover the unexpected ways that God shares his most profound lessons,
look for ways to build bridges in their own communities and serve others, and
gain a deeper understanding of the many ways that K9 units assist police departments and what a K9 officer's daily life looks like.
A Dog Named Mattis will capture the hearts of dog lovers everywhere and remind them that real success is built on relationships filled with trust, communication, and love.
