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In daytime-TV dynamo Joy Behar's follow-up to her New York Times bestseller Sheetzucacapoopoo: My Kind of Dog, Max is off to doggy day care. And while the lovable Shih tzu/cocker spaniel/poodle puppy is initially reluctant to leave the comfort of home for the rigors of obedience school, Max finds that school can be fun . . . especially when all dogs-big and small-learn to get along!
In this follow-up to 2006's SheetzuCacaPoopoo: My Kind of Dog, the mixed-breed, mischievous Max, who is driving his family crazy with his digging and barking, gets sent to doggy day care. Initially unhappy, Max tries his hand as a community organizer, uniting his fellow small dogs against the big bullies ("We deserve to eat at the same time as the big dogs, to nap in the sunny spots, and to get a crack at the ball," Max shouts from his soapbox, a stack of dog dishes). When the larger dogs push back, Max shows them how useful small dogs can be-scratching hard-to-reach itches, retrieving lost toys and serving as the occasional pillow ("I guess you're worth having around after all, little guy," says big dog Brutus). Though the story is slight, Behar's text has heart and charm-like hearing a story from a favorite if overexuberant aunt. Similarly, Barretta's characterizations can seem reminiscent of birthday party caricatures, but the artwork and story have plenty of energy. Ages 6-8. (Mar.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.PreS
Another celebrity author tries her hand at writing a children's book and produces a predictable, didactic, and overly cute story. Evie's pup is part Shih Tzu, part cocker spaniel, and part poodle, which makes him a SheetzuCacaPoopoo. Although the word itself may send preschoolers into giggle fits, the story starts out like many other tales of untrained pets that amuse themselves by wrecking the house. The family's solution is to send Max to Doggy Day Care while Evie is at school. On day one, he is bullied by Brutus. On day two, he organizes the small canines like himself to outsmart the bigger dogs. But on day three, Max convinces both sides to compromise and they play happily ever after. An assortment of Disney-type doggies illustrates this uninspired yarn. Kids who want a really animated story with lots of laughs should pick up Nick Bruel's Poor Puppy (Roaring Brook, 2007).-Martha Simpson, Stratford Library Association, CT
Joy Behar is an actor, writer, comedian, and current cohost of the Emmy Award-winning talk show The View. This is her second book for children. She lives in New York City.
Gene Barretta lives outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Anonymous
Posted September 29, 2011
I've read the first SheetzuCacaPoopoo and thought that the story plot for the sequel sounded interesting. It seems the author is short on ideas, because the conflict in the second book is pretty similar to the first. In the first book, Max meets up with a bunch of snobby purebred dogs that snub mixed-breeds. In this sequel Max meets up with a bunch of snobby big dogs that snub against little dogs. Predictably, Max bridges the gap and brings peace between the two feuding groups. One the things I found a little concerning is that there is not one nice big dog in this book. Every single big dog is portrayed as mean, including the stereotypical bully pit bull Brutus. As a dog lover of both big and small breeds, I found this troubling since it just reinforces dog stereotypes for younger children of Big Mean Dogs and Good Little Dogs. At least the first book had shown that the mixed breeds were not all angels in the beginning and that at least one purebred was friendly. The sequel is a lot less subtle, which I suspect is because Joy Behar herself confessed that this story is supposed to be a political allegory, with the larger breed dogs representing big mean Republicans. I highly doubt many 5-year-olds will make that connection on their own, Joy. Another thing I will mention is that Max is a little nastier in this book (not much, but noticeable). Max is sent to Doggy Daycare because he acts like an out of control brat. When he finds out he's no longer the center of attention like he is at home, he takes it out on his young owner by refusing to be affectionate, glaring at her from the foot of the bed. Worst of all, when Max rallies the little dogs to take back the daycare, his first strategy is to convince the little dogs to act just as mean as the big dogs were originally treating them. They rush to eat all the food first, jump on the big dogs' backs during playtime and steal one dog's favorite pillow and spot at nap time. It's only when this tactic predictably backfires that Max tries cooperation instead. Parents may be split on whether they find this appropriate or not for their children to read about, but I felt it was important enough to mention just in case. Overall, the story is cute enough with adorable artwork. I think it should be fine for most children older than 6. Though, I would suggest that parents discuss some of the issues mentioned above with their younger children, either during or after reading this to gauge their reaction. Some minor misconceptions may have to be addressed with some children.
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Overview
In daytime-TV dynamo Joy Behar's follow-up to her New York Times bestseller Sheetzucacapoopoo: My Kind of Dog, Max is off to doggy day care. And while the lovable Shih tzu/cocker spaniel/poodle puppy is initially reluctant to leave the comfort of home for the rigors of obedience school, Max finds that school can be fun . . . especially when all dogs-big and small-learn to get along!