83 pages • 2 hours read
Gordon KormanNo More Dead Dogs
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2000A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Chapters 9-11Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 9 Summary
Wallace goes to the team’s next game. Though it’s almost 80 degrees out, he wears a hood, scarf, and bandana to disguise himself, not wanting to be noticed or harassed for having detention. Trying to help, a grownup uncovers Wallace’s head, and Dylan recognizes him. He shouts loud enough for everyone to hear, including Wallace’s teammates, who look up, lose track of the ball, and lose the game.
Wallace goes to the locker room after the game, where his teammates lay into him about ruining their chance at a win. Wallace is about to leave when he notices a box of pepper in Feather’s locker—it’s the same kind from the incident at rehearsal. Feather says the pepper is to cover up the taste of the celery he’s been eating.
Monday morning, the principal calls Wallace in to discuss the pepper incident. Wallace doesn’t know for sure that Feather did anything, so he tells a half-truth about not being sure and leaves. He wonders if one of his teammates tried to frame Feather and gets stuck on Cavanaugh, who seems to know more than he should about what’s going on at rehearsal.
In the hall, Wallace runs into Parker from the school newspaper. He starts to blow the kid off but realizes he can use the newspaper to his advantage. Wallace makes it clear the principal is on the hunt for whoever keeps sabotaging the drama club. Wallace is helping out by providing information, which gets explained in the paper by identifying Wallace as the “principal’s eyes and ears in the school” (78).
Chapter 10 Summary
Wallace invites the team over to fertilize the lawn, but only Rick and Feather show up. Wallace doesn’t believe no one else is coming at first, but when no one else comes, he’s forced to admit the truth. The rejection stings because he “always thought my teammates came to help because they were my friends” (80), and he’s sure Cavanaugh has something to do with it.
Later, another of their classmates shows up—the only 16-year-old kid at their school. Wallace invites him to drive the moped in the opening scene of the play because he meets the age requirement. The kid is overjoyed to help, and Wallace’s teammates are taken aback. They don’t understand why Wallace is helping the play. Wallace assures them it’s nothing, but they don’t look like they believe him.
Chapter 11 Summary
One day in class, Trudi tries to convince Rachel she knows who has been vandalizing the set. Rachel doesn’t believe her because she’s sure it’s Wallace. Trudi looks at Rachel like she “just accused the Easter Bunny of armed robbery” and bolsters her argument with the latest article in the newspaper about how Wallace is helping the principal find the guilty party (85). At lunch, Wallace and another kid join Rachel’s table. The kid is a whiz on rollerblades and asks Wallace if there’s a place for him in the show. Rachel is furious but stays silent as Wallace adds a rollerblading dogcatcher to the opening scene.
That afternoon, Rachel runs to Mr. Fogelman’s office to rat Wallace out. There, she finds that someone poured maple syrup in Mr. Fogelman’s desk, destroying his notes about the play. They get the mess cleaned up, and Rachel explains about the dogcatcher. Irate, they storm to the gym, where they find the scene in progress. The rollerblading, the dog, and the moped are pure art, and even Rachel can’t “help but recognize great theater” (91). The other kids want to be on rollerblades, too, and Mr. Fogelman agrees they can try at the next rehearsal.
Chapters 9-11 Analysis
Korman uses irony in this section to reveal the effect of untruths that people believe, like the belief that Wallace’s presence will help the team win their games. Rather than helping the team, when the team realizes Wallace is at the game, they lose. No one realizes it yet except Wallace, but Wallace’s presence is not what makes the team win or lose.
Korman also introduces another red herring in this section with the pepper in Feather’s locker. It implicates the members of the team and misdirects suspicion from Dylan. Interestingly, Wallace is still suspicious of Cavanaugh because of Cavanaugh’s animosity toward him. He also blames Cavanaugh for the team’s abandonment of him, suggesting that he’s not being honest with himself about the true nature of his friendship with the team.
Chapters 10 and 11 continue the shift of power for the play. In Chapter 10, Wallace learns his teammates aren’t true friends, which makes him start to see how the drama kids appreciate him more. As a result, he is more committed to the play and comes up with bigger and better ideas. Mr. Fogelman and Rachel see the art in Wallace’s decisions, and their support sways tentatively toward Wallace’s side. Meanwhile, Wallace downplays his involvement in the play to his remaining football friends, showing that there’s more room for growth in his character.
In earlier chapters, the school newspaper made Wallace and his situation sound worse than it was. In these chapters, Wallace realizes the power of the newspaper and uses it to his advantage. The final story still isn’t exactly what he wants, but at least it paints him in a more favorable light. News is on no one’s side except its own, as shown by how the reporter writes whatever will get the greatest reaction.
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