Amazon.com Review
No one, but no one, knows how to have fun like a dog does. Every month of the year, in rain, sun, wind, or cold, dog days are full of joy and adventure. In this cheerful book of poems, a fuzzy yellow canine narrator bounds through the pages, sharing the delights and perils that a typical dog might encounter from January to December:
"How sweet to be a dog in May,
And garden every single day.
I dig up dirt, I dig up stones,
And plant a row of lovely bones."
Wacky wordsmith Jack Prelutsky's simple, childlike rhymes are perfectly paired with Dyanna Wolcott's
lively, wild perspectives on dogs, people, umbrellas, and buses--all exuding a happy naiveté. Sharp-eyed readers will enjoy picking out the subtle touches in the illustrations--the dog among sheep, the runaway baby buggy with three dalmatians inside, and the Halloween witch hats lurking in the bushes. An irresistible treat for readers any time of the year. (Click to see a
sample spread.) (Ages 3 to 7)
--Emilie Coulter
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Publishers Weekly
Rhyming quatrains and whimsical pictures describe each month in a fun-loving dog's year in this good-natured collaboration. The tenor of Prelutsky's poems (The Gargoyle on the Roof) is affable but mild; the zaniness and linguistic play that characterize much of his work go missing here: "It's very noisy in July,/ When fireworks light the evening sky./ Though I'm a patriot and proud,/ For ears like mine, it's much too loud"; or, "It's late November, sing hooray,/ For now it is Thanksgiving Day./ I do not think that I can wait/ To taste that turkey on the plate." Debut illustrator Wolcott is responsible for much of the book's merriment. Taking creative liberties with perspective, she renders the pup in amusing poses: riding the March winds, he flies through the air alongside kites; with other costumed dogs, he cavorts in the beams of flashlights on Halloween night; and in January he sleds on a field of snow in a scene that looks as busy and kinetic as an amusement-park ride. Kids will want to return to her brightly patterned pictures to spot all the playful details she has planted. Ages 2-7. (Aug.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
