Walter Canis Inflatus: Walter the Farting Dog, Latin-Language Edition (Latin Edition) [Hardcover]

William Kotzwinkle (Author), Glenn Murray (Author), Audrey Colman (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 8, 2004 | Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up | Series: Walter the Farting Dog

Warning: This book may cause flatulence. This is the Latin edition of the beloved New York Times Bestseller. Walter is a fine dog, except for one small problem: he has gas. He can't help it; it's just the way he is. Fortunately, the kids Billy and Betty love him regardless, but Father says he's got to go! Poor Walter, he's going to the dog pound tomorrow. And then, in the night, burglars strike. Walter has his chance to be a hero. A children's beloved classic, this story will have kids rolling on the floor with laughter. Adults are permitted to laugh too.

Editorial Reviews

Review

The original English is a New York Times Bestseller!

"Is there any reason to purchase this, besides the fact that kids will find it hysterical? The dialog is clever...and the art is quite ingenious. Seemingly computer-conceived characters--including Walter complete with a permanently abashed expression--are unique efforts, as are the smoothly colored backgrounds. All in all, it's a gas.
-Booklist

About the Author

William Kotzwinkle is the author of eighteen children's books, including The World is Big and I'm So Small, Tales from the Empty Notebook, The Nap Master, E.T. The Extraterrestrial and E.T. The Book of the Green Planet. His books for adults include The Bear Went Over the Mountain, The Fan Man, Fata Morgana, and Doctor Rat. He is the two-time winner of the National Magazine Award for Fiction and of the World Fantasy Award. His books are published all over the world.

Glen Murray is a supervisor for educational technology in New Brunsqick, Canada. He spends a lot of time in schools where he often mixes business with pleasure by reading to elementary classes. He has written radio dramas for the CBC, as well as articles on Canadian history and technology. He recently worked with the Lung Association on their Flight for Life project, raising awareness from coast to coast about air quality and the enviornment.

Audrey Colman is an artist and designer living in Berkeley, California. Her art has been featured in a variety of products from magazines, posters, and other print work to multi-media projects. This is her first children's book. She is also the author and illustrator of Francine, Francine the Beach Party Queen! Visit her art at www.goodartstudio.com.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Frog Children's Books; Language ed edition (July 8, 2004)
• Language: Latin
• ISBN-10: 158394110X
• ISBN-13: 978-1583941102
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 0.4 x 10 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #687,990 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Walter Canis Inflatus, May 17, 2007

By 

E. J. Hoverd (Wellington, NZ.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Walter Canis Inflatus: Walter the Farting Dog, Latin-Language Edition (Latin Edition) (Hardcover)

What is a great and entertaining book in English is now a firm favourite with my son in Latin. He likes being able to follow the Latin using the english version written directly below. However the Latin requires someone who has reasonable proficiency in the language if you are wishing to directly translate and explain the Latin to a child and there is no helpful glossary. All in all, a great book - very quirky pictures but a firm favourite with my son.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Ill Wind Sweetened With Humor, December 11, 2009

By 

Spudman (Pasadena, MD United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Walter Canis Inflatus: Walter the Farting Dog, Latin-Language Edition (Latin Edition) (Hardcover)

The picturis ab Audrey Colman collatis are wonderful fun, playful, and entertaining. My memory is foggy, but the illustrations here seem brighter than those in the first book. Maybe a different printing technique or better inks were used here. There also seem to be some embellishments in this edition that weren't in the original English version. I may be mistaken on this one however.
On almost every page there's a spider or two to be found, but I'm not sure why. On one page a person in a wall portrait appears to be holding his nose as Walter farts. On the vet's diploma we read "Fart expert," and in the family bathroom we see containers of fart buster and phart off. There's something whimsical and humorous, if not gaseous, to be found on every page.
The pictures of the kids' bedroom is a mix of Monty Python, Pee Wee's Playhouse, and Dali, a mix of realism and the cartoonish.

Anyone could enjoy this book on some level, but only those with some Latin background can fully appreciate the nuances and humor in the translation. One of my favorites is Dobbin's interpretation of "That dog farts morning, noon and night" as "Iste canis XXIV/VII/CCCLXV pedet."

VCR is translated as "MQIOIPCVCI" accompanied by the footnote " Machina quae imagines omne in posterum captas visendi causa illustrat." At first I was baffled by the string of capital letters until I looked at the first letters of each word in the footnote. Clever stuff!

Dobbin's translation is at times so liberally creative that I had a difficult time matching the English phrases with their Latin counterparts. At times a single English sentence would become two Latin sentences and vice versa. Those who have studied Latin in recent years or have a great memory may fare better than I.

I enjoyed this book immensely from the cover picture of Betty floating in a delirium of laughter , with her nose held firmly, above a farting Walter to the back cover where a smiling Billy watches her impishly. The read was a fun refresher of Latin classes taken long ago and a lesson in how much I've forgotten since.

5.0 out of 5 stars Questionable, but..., November 20, 2009

By 

B. Smith (Hong Kong) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Walter Canis Inflatus: Walter the Farting Dog, Latin-Language Edition (Latin Edition) (Hardcover)

Maybe the subject matter of farting and flatulence is questionnable, but the book is nontheless hilarious. If depictions of farts bother you, don't buy this book. If you just want to have a good laugh about something not referred to in polite society then read it and be merry.
The artwork is modern-looking and the text is probably a bit hard for most kids. I suppose the book is mainly for those who are grown-up but still young at heart.

If you're looking for something more traditional and easy enough for children I recommend Puer Zingiberi Panis: et Fabulae Alterae (Latin Edition). There are colorful pictures on every page that my son, who is three, loves to see while I'm reading the stories to him.