Customer Reviews

The Very Kind Rich Lady and Her One Hundred Dogs

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2 star:		(1)
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Based on a true story, Chinlun Lee has written and illustrated a delightful picture book about a very rich and kind lady who adopted one hundred dogs. They all live together in a tall house on a hill where the lady takes care of all their needs. She brushes them everyday and checks them for fleas, talks to them, fusses over them, feeds them and then calls each by name to come outside and play. There's Papa (he's the first) and Mr Samuel, Mary and Fifi. There's Fifi's puppies, Eeny, Meeny, Miney and Mo (that's eight)...on and on until she finally calls her one hundredth dog, Bingo, who's always late..... Ms Lee's gentle text is beautifully complemented by her simple, joyful watercolor and pencil illustrations. Each dog is carefully drawn to show its individuality and personality and youngsters will enjoy poring over the pages, finding their favorites. Perfect for pre-schoolers as young as two, The Very Kind Rich Lady and her One Hundred Dogs is a charming book that shouldn't be missed.

Most children love cute fluffy puppies and this book has plenty of dogs of all kinds. You will find a very rich, compassionate lady in the book who tends to her dogs, all one hundred of them, with as much tender loving care as one would give to their children. If you are a canine lover, do not be surprised if you actually enjoy the book as much as your children. The illustrations are delightful and each canine friend has a personality which almost comes to life. This is a beautiful book from start to finish and highly recommended. The message also teaches children from a young age how to care for a dog. It is a learning experience on the time, love, medical attention and commitment a canine friend requires to be healthy and happy.

The title sets up the tension right away: how will Chinlun Lee ever be able to capture the personalities of 100 dogs, clearly and thoroughly enough to satisfy the perceptive picture book audience? This book brilliantly rises to the challenge. The caricatures are hilarious, especially the body language, but also the incredibly witty, charming, very real names of each dog. The parentheses (which keep count) establish the voice of the book which is intimate and endearing, as if the narrator is sharing a secret. Chinlun plays with contrast and numbers - sometimes showing a certain group of dogs, sometimes showing the whole bunch as a single, exuberant force, sometimes highlighting just one dog (as in the case of Bingo who is usually last, and Papa who is named first). This is the stuff of which classic picture books are made. Best of all, Chinlun doesn't just TELL us it's possible to love 100 dogs with care and understanding, she SHOWS us in one of the happiest books I've read in a long time. This book perfectly demonstrates boundless quality of love. All one has to do is give name to those animals (people, things) that are loved and suddenly there is room in the heart for every last one. Thank you, Chinlun!!

My toddlers both love this sweet story. It is mostly a series of charming illustrations of one hundred dogs of every size and shape, some even with disabilities. Each dog has it's name printed next to it.The girls are so enamored with the menagerie, they are actively sounding out the names of the dogs.
My 4 year old is speech delayed but she is very motivated to pronounce the doggies names correctly. If your child likes dogs, and who doesn't, you've go to get this book.

My daughter loves dogs. She described the book as boring and demanded a second bedtime story. The entire book is in the title and reading the one hundred names twice did not seem to capture my child's interest.

If the story would have been about The Very Kind Lady and Her One Hundred Dogs it would have been better. The focus on the fact that she was a rich lady didn't add any meaning to the story (except, perhaps, that she is able to have 100 dogs and take care of them.) As a picture book, the illustrations are interesting and the dogs have funny and silly names (all 100 are listed twice.)

As a story, however, it lacks substance. The fact that the lady is described as a very kind rich lady throughout the book and not just as a very kind lady never sounds right to me.