TRIXIE & JINX

Trixie returns in a second picture-book outing (I, Trixie, Who Is Dog, 2009) that proves to be only slightly less problematic than its predecessor. Jinx the wiener dog is Trixie’s best friend. They do everything together, from playing video games to quiet indoor reading. When Jinx leaves for a week of vacation with his family, Trixie is distraught. She mopes, attempts to befriend the local wildlife, then at last sees Jinx return. The moral of the story is that “a friend is more precious than pirate gold.” Koontz spells out his morals, preferring to tell rather than show. The entire point of this particular book appears to be that when friends leave you miss them. Mangled rhyme schemes appear throughout the text (for example, pairing “discuss literature” with “Share an éclair”) even as Cleland’s watercolors charm. She is clearly the star of the show here, but even her talents can’t save this distinctly mundane bit of storytelling. For fans of Koontz’s other Trixie books, regardless of quality. (Picture book. 4-8)