My Big Dog (Family Storytime) [Hardcover]

Janet Stevens (Author), Susan Stevens Crummel (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up | Series: Family Storytime

Caldecott Medalist, Janet Stevens, along with her sister, Susan Stevens-Crummel, tell a charming tale about a cat named Merl, who sees his peaceful life turn upside down when a Golden Retreiver puppy moves into the household. First in the series, My Big Dog is perfect for storytime, bedtime, or anytime!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The arrival of a big-hearted, dopey golden retriever puppy disrupts a reigning cat's domain in sister collaborators Stevens (Tops & Bottoms) and Crummel's irresistible tale told from the feline's point of view. Merl, a crotchety brown-and-white cat with a pink play mouse dangling from its mouth, likes things Merl's way: "Inside my house, my pur-r-r-r-fect house, everything is mine! My dish. My sofa. My chair...." The cat is not amused when the new puppy bounds up with her "sloppy, drooly tongue" and tries to make friends. But it gets worse: the dog just keeps getting bigger (shown adorably full-grown in the centerfold with a "Violet" name tag), so the cat sets off in search of a new home until Violet comes along to retrieve Merl. Stevens's busy, close-up pastel drawings underscore Merl's firm position by frequently depicting the cat solo, simply looking out at the viewer. Stevens effectively uses these one-page portraits to convey the cat's internal life through its whiskered disgruntled expressions, uneven ears and lifeless toy mouse, while depicting Merl's interaction with Violet in successive energetic spot drawings. The few times humans are in evidence, they appear in black-and-white photographs that Stevens overlays atop her drawings. The authors' chronicle of the puppy's slow victory over Merl's disaffections works to great comic effect. Ages 3-7.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2-A disgruntled feline tells his story. Everything in the house belongs to Merl until an intruder arrives-an annoying puppy that licks him and follows him around. When the golden retriever grows up, the cat hits the road, convinced that they can never be friends. Several people try to adopt Merl but nothing works out to his satisfaction. One lady dresses him up with bows and ribbons and a ridiculous striped jacket. Forlorn, he's rescued by the dog and taken home. Maybe they can be friends after all. Merl's first-person narrative is to the point; however, as the action progresses, the cat's deadpan, smugly superior voice begins to border on the pathetic. Instead of staying on the top of his game, he becomes a pawn through his own stubborn behavior; while his dress-up get-up may look funny, it only serves to highlight his fall from grace. Once back home, the cat declares himself the ruler but it's really the dog that wins children's hearts. Initially the scruffy, unkempt, free-flowing pastels are humorous and energizing. In the few scenes with people, the humans are pictured in photographic gray, creating an intriguing and visually arresting juxtaposition to the splashy, colorful animal world. However, as Merl continues to mope about on the pages, readers' interest and sympathy begin to wane. What starts out as funny and original becomes overused. Merl might tell readers he's "a very special cat," but it's hard to know why.
Martha Topol, Traverse Area District Library, Traverse City, MI
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Golden Books; First edition (September 8, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0307102203
• ISBN-13: 978-0307102201
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 8.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,995,901 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Such Fun!, August 20, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: My Big Dog (Family Storytime) (Hardcover)

I LOVE this book! I read it a couple of times in stores and laughed every time. I picked it up because of the cute Golden Retriever on the cover. (I have a dog like that) But it was the hilarious story telling from a cat's point of view that really made me laugh. I finally gave in and bought my very own copy to read to My Big Dog.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Teachers---A Book Great For All Ages!, December 16, 2000

By 

Trevor M. - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Big Dog (Family Storytime) (Hardcover)

I use this book with my middle school students to show VOICE in writing(from Six Traits Writing). It's a great model for personification also. The kids love the book, even though it's not for the reading age.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exellent,I think they should give this book a million stars!, February 2, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: My Big Dog (Family Storytime) (Hardcover)

This is my favorite book in the whole, entire world! I really like the writing, it is easy to read and it has the cutest dog but the cat is kinda greedy!! That's ok, I still love this wonderful and beautifully written book! I can't imagine anyone, not even a cat like Herl (the very special cat) wanting to get rid of a cute dog like Violet! My mom thinks it's embarrasing that a fifth grader like me loves this book! But I really do!! Your biggest fan, Meredith