PEEP!

How far would you be willing to go to save your best friend?

Dot, a brown-and-white dog wearing a red knit cap, loves her best friend, Peep, a purple stuffed elephant. A true homebody, Dot doesn’t love going to the park with the other dogs but does enjoy a jaunt in the garden. Even if there’s a strange smell or something new, being with Peep reassures fretful Dot. When Peep is taken by another dog one day, Dot is forced to leave her fenced-in haven to save her pal. When she ventures into the park, she finds Peep—and a host of canines racing around. The other dogs think that Dot’s efforts to get Peep back are an invitation to play, and eventually Dot decides that the running and chasing are kind of fun. But what if Peep gets taken again one day? Dot hurries home; the next day, she refuses to even leave the house, so her new friends come to her, and she learns that all of them have their own versions of comfort objects, which join Peep on the back endpapers. The illustrations, a mix of full-bleed spreads and vignettes, capture a dog’s perspective perfectly. Though the situation that Dot faces is an overwhelming one—and one that will likely resonate with children also worried about making new friends—soft artwork depicting smiling doggy faces brimming with emotion will convince little ones that taking a risk is well worth it. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Just the thing to persuade even the most nervous of nellies to venture out of their comfort zones.