POUNDIES: Maisie's Great Escape by V.L. Ireland Maisie has spent her whole life in a cold kennel, bred and used until her usefulness runs out. When a sudden storm and a flash of lightning open the gate, the weary Cavalier King Charles Spaniel bolts into a world she has never known. Rescued by a lonely elderly woman named Mabel, Maisie briefly tastes warmth, shortbread, and a name of her own. But the dog warden arrives, and Maisie is taken to the pound where forgotten dogs wait, hope fades, and time runs out. There she meets a remarkable pack of "Poundies": • Wilbur, a proud blind Westie with a Highland memory • Jasper, a trembling Jack Russell puppy who stutters when afraid • Buddy, a golden Labrador with an unbreakable heart • Axel, a disciplined ex-police German Shepherd • Blade and Fang, scarred Staffordshire brothers haunted by their past • Genevieve, a posh foxhound who fled the hunt • Bertie, a tiny Yorkshire Terrier who hides sadness behind jokes and tricks • And others who each carry their own quiet wounds Together they form an unlikely family. With the help of a streetwise tabby cat named Pixels, they plan a daring escape and set out across the countryside in search of freedom, safety, and a place to belong. Heartfelt, funny, and full of courage, Poundies: Maisie's Great Escape is a story about the dogs who wait behind kennel doors the ones nobody hears and the extraordinary bonds that form when the voiceless finally find their pack.
