Ginger Pye

Ginger Pye
Author	Eleanor Estes
Illustrator	Eleanor Estes
Cover artist	Arthur Howard
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre	Children's novel
Publisher	Harcourt Brace & World
Publication date	1951
Media type	Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages	306 pp
ISBN	0-590-45126-X
OCLC	28174884
Followed by	Pinky Pye

Ginger Pye is a book by Eleanor Estes about a dog named Ginger Pye. The book was originally published in 1951 and it won the Newbery Medal for excellence in American children's literature in 1952.

Plot summary

This book is about a puppy named Ginger. Jerry Pye, a resident in Cranbury, Connecticut in 1919, bought a puppy he wanted from Ms. Speedy for a hard-earned dollar he made while dusting the pews in the church for Sam Doody. Jerry was pleased with the puppy and headed home. On the way home, Jerry and his sister Rachel heard footsteps behind them. When they turned back, they did not see anything. Jerry decided that if anyone was following them, then that follower was after his dog. After a few days, Jerry remembered that he hadn't given his puppy a name! Rachel, Uncle Bennie, and Jerry thought of a name but couldn't think of one. He asked his mother and his mother said Ginger because he looks like ginger and has quality of ginger. So they called him, Ginger or Ginger Pye. Ginger was a smart dog. He even located the school that Jerry goes to. Almost all his neighbors and friends knew Ginger. But then suddenly, Ginger disappeared!

Later on Thanksgiving Day, the dog, who the Pyes named Ginger, was missing. Jerry and his sister Rachel tried to find him, but they could not. They go all around Cranbury and ask neighbors to help. They found out that Ginger had been tied up in a shed. Then they find out who the person was that stole Ginger (the unsavory character) was Wally Bullwinkle. At the end Uncle Bennie had found the dog. Everybody was very happy when they got Ginger back. They thought he had been treated badly, but he would never forget this moment.

Sequel

Pinky Pye is a 1958 book by Eleanor Estes, the sequel to the Newbery Award-winning Ginger Pye. The story's main characters are the same as in the previous book, the Pyes. Mr. Pye, a well known bird man, gets a call that he and his family can spend their summer on Fire Island. Meanwhile, a pygmy owl belonging to a friend of Mr. Pye's disappears. At Fire Island, the Pyes discover a small black kitten crying on their doorstep, and decide to keep it as their own. Papa, Rachel and Jerry Pye's dad, loves names that start with PY, so Rachel was surprised that Papa didn't change Pinky Pye's name to Pynky. Pinky is an abandoned black cat that was named Pinky because of its pink tongue. Pinky Pye, an extremely smart and talented kitten, not only impresses the neighbors with her sparring with Ginger, but also is able to type out her life story, down to her first memories... As the Pyes (and Pinky) are on their amazing journey, they accomplish the task as bonding as a family to discover the true meaning of love and friendship.