From Publishers Weekly
Day (the Carl books) and Edens (the Santa Cows stories) team up for this quirky, not altogether successful tale about a bullterrier puppy. Darby chews and destroys so many things in the Bell family's home that he is banished to a fenced-in doghouse. But when heavy rains precipitate an embankment collapse and the Bells' oceanside house is buried in the landslide, it is Darby who tunnels his way to the trapped family and leads everyone to safety. As always, Day's art is wonderfully expressive, and just the eager look on Darby's face and the ready-for-action position of his tail prove that she understands bull terriers as well as she does rottweilers. The storytelling, however, feels contrived. Opposite the title page is an "ad" showing Darby and his littermates; the opening spread features the children pleading for one of the puppies; the next spread, introduced by the phrase "A week or so later," pictures the Bells at a counter labeled "Airfreight Pick-up," asking if there is a shipment for them. Then, as the story progresses, none-too-subtle clues in the picturesAroad signs, weather warnings on TV screensAforeshadow the trouble ahead. Subsequent abrupt shifts in narration begin to call attention to themselves, and as a result, the arc of the story feels uneven, as if the whole exercise is an elaborate set-up for Darby's heroic feat. Ages 3-8. (Sept.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 2-English bull terrier Darby is described in a mail-order catalog as "lively and affectionate." True, but his breeder did not mention, "Chews everything!" Still, when the new pet arrives, the Bell family members love his sense of fun, and train him to sit, speak, and fetch. Nothing is safe, however, from Darby's teeth. After he damages furniture, photographs, plants, and pillows, Mr. Bell puts the pup in an outdoor fenced enclosure. Throughout the story, disaster has been foreshadowed. During a storm, the family's beachfront home collapses, trapping them inside. Rescue workers try to get the Bells out, but it is Darby that literally chews through the debris and makes a tunnel for them to use to escape. The story ends with a final portrait of the proud dog wearing a "Canine Hero Award" medal and holding in his mouth a piece of the endpaper he has "bitten" off. The watercolor paintings depict his destructive behavior in a realistic but fond manner. Day is famous for her books about Carl the Rottweiler. In Darby she has created another canine that children will love.
Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher's School, Richmond, VA Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
