Belle (Gotsch)

When Big Toby and his father, Bonehead throw Belle out of their truck at a convenience store, 12 year-old Darcy and her Auntie Ellen rescue the frightened puppy. They show Belle kindness and offer her a life with love and security. However Belle thinks no human is worth trusting. Darcy's family and their pets, including a cat, try to show Belle otherwise. Will she realize that though she cannot change her past, she can put it aside and build a future full of happiness? When Bonehead and Big Toby reappear and threaten Darcy, the girl's survival depends on the choice Belle makes. Written in the first person from a dog's point of view, Belle's Star empowers young people who have escaped abuse and bullying to build new lives. Adventure and colorful characters help these children face painful issues, and find the strength to heal.

Belle wishes she didn't understand people language, especially words like sit, stay, and come. Those commands take the fun out of being a pet. Worse, Belle's owner Darcy is so busy with school, soccer, and singing that she hardly has time to play with Belle. In search of fun, Belle digs out of the yard, knocks over waste baskets, and encourages Darcy's other dog Buster into all kinds of mischief. Darcy's furious parents threaten to find a new home for the disobedient dog. Darcy enrolls Belle in agility training to teach her discipline. Determined to stay with her beloved mistress, Belle takes on the challenging sport, discovering along the way that discipline means far more than an angry word. It means coping with Big Toby, her former tormentor, and keeping an eye out for Bonehead, Toby's cruel father, and mastering the terrifying agility obstacle, the teeter totter. Can she focus her new found discipline to overcome her fear and succeed?

Moving to New Mexico is quite a shock for Belle and her owner, Darcy Simmons; so very different from their home in Illinois. But Darcy and Belle quickly make new friends in their neighbors Susan and her Airedale Terrier, Jazzy. Life would be great in their new home, if it wasn't for the dog-hating girl across the way, Emily Robinson. If that wasn't bad enough for Belle, there's no agility club in town and Darcy starts training her and Buster to become therapy dogs, whatever that is. Learning to be a therapy dog for Belle is so different than becoming a great agility dog, especially when she doesn't understand the importance. Buster seems to be a natural at it, and that irritates Belle even more. When Emily falsely accuses Belle of biting her, Belle's life takes a turn for the worse. Can Belle overcome the challenges of being a good therapy dog, while handling the meanness she and Darcy face from Emily?