Customer Reviews

Seadogs: An Epic Ocean Operetta

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Like most members of my generation (the X one) I enjoy a good smattering of Gilbert and Sulliven before beddy-bye. And I cannot tell you how many times I've sat listening to the gentle strains of The Pirates of Penzance while pondering, "This is good. I wonder how much better it would be if performed by dogs?". Well now I have my answer. "Seadogs" is perhaps one of the quirkiest ideas to come out of the fine fine publishing house of Atheneum. Part comic strip caper, part rousing piratical tale, and part musical revue the book works as well as it does simply because its disparate elements fit together perfectly. Whether you've a kid who just likes their picture books good and cartoony or a child with an ear for bouncy trouncy rhythms, the combined artistry of author Lisa Wheeler and illustrator Mark Siegel is best put in a single word: Harmony.

A small female pup attends a revue of a show called "Seadogs" with her mother. The time period appears to be mid-Victorian and behind scenes we see the actors and actresses getting reading. When the curtain lifts we are plunged into a whole new world of dogs and ships and sea. An old seadog goes into his favorite pub and mourns the fact that he can no longer go to the ocean he loves. Brave beagle and her companion, a timid but sweet dachshund, cannot cheer him until he vows to buy a seaworthy vessel and take them with him on "one last sail". Off the three go to find adventure on the high seas. All goes well until the ship is plundered by the fearsome Jacques FiFi (the terrier of the sea) who leaves behind a treasure map. With a stowaway pup and a map to guide them adventure, capture, and even more adventure rounds out this solid storytime fare.

The book is innately comic, but I was delighted to find some moments of real tenderness as well. When the seadogs find a pup hidden in a coil of rope, the captain adopts the wayward hound and their songs together are full of tenderness. Mind you, there are plenty of dog puns to pore through here. Jacques Fifi commands a crew known as the Mongrel Hoard. There are framed prints of authors named "Growbert" and "Sulllibone". You get the picture. But the songs are catchy, the illustrations livelly and amusing, and the book a real joy to go through. I once had the pleasure of sharing an elevator with illustrator Mark Siegel (unbeknownst to him) and I can ascertain that though this may be his first book for children, I am certain it will not be his last.

If I have any problems with this book, it's that there wasn't a cd of these songs included. With picture books like "Science Verse", such cds are givens. Not so here. Looks like audiences will have to come up with their own tunes if they want to share in the fun. Still, it's a great little title and perfect reading material for a dark and rainy night.

I love this book! Having grown up in a family of theater-loving members, many of them participants in operas and musicals, this book had us nostalgically laughing and identifying with the ups and downs of Old Sea Dog and his canine crew. Lisa Wheeler's words capture the on-stage feeling perfectly. Bravo, Ms Wheeler! Encore! Encore!

Reader in Wisconsin

I was so glad to see SEADOGS on amazon's New & Notable list. When I stumbled across this picture book by Lisa Wheeler, I was blown away. The story is uniquely written in a series of clever poems. Woven into the Seadogs daring adventures you will also discover a touching story of friendship and courage. But don't let the word "operetta" fool you. The writing is funny, fresh, and far from stuffy.

Mark Siegel illustrated this book in a series of amazing cartoon panels. I could spend hours just admiring all of the fun, interesting details. Kids and adults will appreciate the unique design of this book and its crew of expressive characters.

SEADOGS is definitely a one-of-a-kind, groundbreaking picture book.
Don't miss the boat by missing out on this book!

...This book is the textbook antonym of "slight." It is so full a picture book experience, the publisher should have charged more for it.

It tells the story of Old Seadog who decides to take one last sail, and invites his friends, Beagle and Dachshund, to join him.

The book opens with a wordless two-page spread that follows a young dog in a dress and a pink bow as she enters the theater and takes her seat. The curtain begins to lift and we see five sets of paws beneath its hem. Let the show begin!

What follows are 30-odd poems (or lyrics) by Wheeler which take the old salt and his canine crew on their high seas adventure. They clash with pirates led by Captain Jacques Fifi, the Terrier of the Sea. They find a treasure map and a stowaway pup. They find and lose buried treasure but escape with not only their lives - but newfound love.

At the end, the entire cast takes a bow(wow) in front of the SRO audience, as well they should.

The illustrations are full of wit, and Wheeler has a talent for wordplay that makes her a perfect poet for the young. But what makes this book so distinguished is that it works on so many levels -- as a rousing adventure story, and as (humorous) poetry. An energetic teacher (or artsy kids) could stage it. Because Siegel's illustrations are done in cartoon panels, you can give Seadogs to a budding artist who wants to work in the comic-strip style or to a kid who you know would like graphic novels but perhaps isn't ready for the violent and sexual content many of them contain.

Anyway, after finishing this book, I thought, Ye Gods, what an imagination! And you know, of course, what my audience said . . .

Read it again!
 

Seadogs is a favorite in our house and I highly recommend it as a great read-aloud, sing-aloud, and/or as a great comic for pre-readers. My 4-year-old knows the story by heart, and is happy to follow along with the illustrations, telling me or his little brother about the adventures of Old Seadog, Brave Beagle, and Dear Dachshund, and about their run-ins with Pirate Captain Jacques Fifi(the Terrier of the Sea!) and his mangy crew. It is an inspired tail(err, tale), and easily ranks as a Most Loved Book in our reading rotations.

This book is truly a joy to read. The verse is so skillful crafted that you will find yourself developing a Scottish accent as you meander through the gorgeously illustrated pages.