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I AM THE DOG, I AM THE CAT

Name: I AM THE DOG, I AM THE CAT
Author: Donald Hall
ISBN: 0-8037-1504-8

by Donald Hall & illustrated by Barry Moser ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 1994

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In the manner of the insects in Paul Fleischman's Joyful Noise (1988, Newbery Medal), a dog and cat express their views on themselves, their world, and each other. Renowned poet Hall's succinct declarations are right on target (``Dog: Making the acquaintance of babies,/I allow them to pull my hair./I do not like it,/but I allow it, for/ I am the dog./Cat: When babies come into the house,/I try to vanish./Babies are crazy!/Babies sit on you''). Hall captures the foibles and idiosyncrasies of both pets, straying only occasionally from witty scrutiny of animal behavior into anthropomorphic projection (``Cat: The dog amuses me''). Moser's candid portraits are equally apt: A baleful, pyramidal, lime-eyed cat glowers over its dish; a wary UPS man peers past weighty boxes at the even weightier Rottweiler; dog and cat snooze in concert while a mouse creeps past. He makes grand compositions of everything from a cat's tail poking ignominiously from beneath a rug to a dog sniffing a hydrant. A delight. Don't forget to enlist a second voice for sharing aloud. (Picture book. 4+)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1994

ISBN: 0-8037-1504-8

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Dial Books

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1994

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS

- BOOK REVIEW
THE OXFORD ILLUSTRATED BOOK OF AMERICAN CHILDREN'S POEMS
by Donald Hall

- BOOK REVIEW
THE MILKMAN'S BOY
by Donald Hall & illustrated by Greg Shed

- BOOK REVIEW
OLD HOME DAY
by Donald Hall & illustrated by Emily Arnold McCully

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THE WILD ROBOT PROTECTS

From the Wild Robot series , Vol. 3

by Peter Brown ; illustrated by Peter Brown ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 26, 2023

Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant.

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Robot Roz undertakes an unusual ocean journey to save her adopted island home in this third series entry.

When a poison tide flowing across the ocean threatens their island, Roz works with the resident creatures to ensure that they will have clean water, but the destruction of vegetation and crowding of habitats jeopardize everyone’s survival. Brown’s tale of environmental depredation and turmoil is by turns poignant, graceful, endearing, and inspiring, with his (mostly) gentle robot protagonist at its heart. Though Roz is different from the creatures she lives with or encounters—including her son, Brightbill the goose, and his new mate, Glimmerwing—she makes connections through her versatile communication abilities and her desire to understand and help others. When Roz accidentally discovers that the replacement body given to her by Dr. Molovo is waterproof, she sets out to seek help and discovers the human-engineered source of the toxic tide. Brown’s rich descriptions of undersea landscapes, entertaining conversations between Roz and wild creatures, and concise yet powerful explanations of the effect of the poison tide on the ecology of the island are superb. Simple, spare illustrations offer just enough glimpses of Roz and her surroundings to spark the imagination. The climactic confrontation pits oceangoing mammals, seabirds, fish, and even zooplankton against hardware and technology in a nicely choreographed battle. But it is Roz’s heroism and peacemaking that save the day.

Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)

Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023

ISBN: 9780316669412

Page Count: 288

Publisher: Little, Brown

Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S ACTION & ADVENTURE FICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
CREEPY CRAYON!
by Aaron Reynolds ; illustrated by Peter Brown

- BOOK REVIEW
FRED GETS DRESSED
by Peter Brown ; illustrated by Peter Brown

- BOOK REVIEW
THE WILD ROBOT ESCAPES
by Peter Brown ; illustrated by Peter Brown

PETE THE CAT'S 12 GROOVY DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

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PETE THE CAT'S 12 GROOVY DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

by James Dean ; illustrated by James Dean ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 18, 2018

Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among

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Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.

If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”

Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)