Customer Reviews

Firehouse Dog (Read With Me)

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This is an excellent book with elements that will grab a child's interest--a loving dog and a fireman's life. The story is told using photos of actual activities at a fire station and the Dalmatian they keep as a pet. The photos give a vivid account of a fireman's lifestyle. It first explains the equipment they use then it shows some of their activities when not at a fire. I particularly liked the sequence beginning with the firemen sitting down at a table ready to enjoy dinner. They're relaxed and chatting away in idle conversation when the firebell rings. In the next photo you see them rushing away from the table with stern looks, all business. The following photo shows them sliding down the pole and diving into their gear. Then they're racing away to the fire. Threaded throughout the story is the lovingly treated dalmatian who also has his responsibilities at the station. The book is interesting, educational, action-oriented, and real.

ISBN 0590468464 - Printed in the U.S.A. Marked Reading Level 2, ages 3 to 7. Paperback, 32 pages. Cartwheel Books, trademark of Scholastic Inc. Part of the Read with Me Paperbacks series. Published by Scholastic Inc. in 1993. By Amy Hutchings and Richard Hutchings, photos by Richard Hutchings.

Hooper is a Dalmatian that lives in a firehouse. A day in the life of Hooper, and the firefighters he works with, is described and illustrated with color photos. The firefighters' equipment, how they pass the time between fires (practice drills, exercising, etc.), and how they live together at the firehouse when they're on duty is explained, as is Hooper's job - educating children about fire safety! Just as the firefighters sit down to dinner, the alarm goes off and they rush to the fire, leaving Hooper to guard the firehouse. Hooper is happy when his co-workers all return safely.

First, a note as an adult - Written eight years before the September 11, 2001, attacks, this almost mundane look at the day-to-day life in a FDNY Firehouse (Engine Company 211, Ladder Company 119, Brooklyn) made me consider the 2001 attacks a little differently. I cannot imagine the lives of these men transitioning from the ones in these photos to the TV coverage of that day, but I know that that happened (not necessarily these men, of course) and that many shrugged off the hero-worship with "Just doing our job." Made me proud/sad.

Back to the kid's book. After the hoopla surrounding 101 Dalmatians and the surge of adopted and then abandoned dogs, my son and I bought one such no-longer-wanted Dalmatian (for the record, we kept her until she died). Ditto was the reason we bought this book, because my son loved all things Dalmatian. The book's focus on the entire firehouse, rather than just the dog, was a small letdown for my son, but I think the excitement of the race to the fire at the end made up for it. The photos are great, though some are a bit too dark. The second to the last photo, of a couple firefighters knocked out on beds in a darkened room with Hooper sitting in the doorway is fantastic. Perhaps it's the flowered sheets. The text is educational and entertaining, bound to capture the attention of young readers, boys in particular.

- AnnaLovesBooks