Theo TheSaurus and the Perfect Pet

by Shelli R. Johannes, Mike Moran (Illustrator)

Overview

Theo TheSaurus is back in a brand-new pet-friendly adventure with big words and even bigger fun! This series is Fancy Nancy for dinosaur lovers.

Theo longs for a pet of his very own. So when he finds a baby'sabretooth tiger, it feels like the perfect match. But when Theo's big vocabulary makes it difficult to train his new pet, Theo must find a different way to communicate with Fang if he wants to hang onto his furry companion.

A sweet and funny book filled with bright art, a lovable dino character, and a full glossary of big words at the end, readers have tons of fun—and learn some new words along the way! It's FANCY NANCY for the dino-loving set!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593464328
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	07/26/2022
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	10.44(w) x 10.31(h) x 0.33(d)
Lexile:	AD510L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Shelli R. Johannes (she/her) is the co-author of the Loves Science series. An animal lover, she can often be found volunteering with animal conservation groups or rescuing strays off the side of the highway. Shelli lives in Atlanta with her husband, two kids, and a whole bunch of pets.

Visit her online at srjohannes.com.
Follow her on Twitter and Instagram @srjohannes.

Mike Moran (he/him) is an illustrator and artist whose work has appeared in many mediums from magazines, newspapers, animation, children's books, toy packaging, apps, and trade show convention tents to greeting cards. A huge baseball and Beatles fan, he lives with his wife and two sons in Florham Park, New Jersey.

Follow him on Twitter and Instagram @mikemoran_illo.

Editorial Reviews

"The playful art...[is] sure to garner giggles, and the candy-colored animals bring pops of color to the predominantly green-and-brown Mesozoic backdrop. While Theo’s adventure relies on a dash of absurdity, his understanding of Fang has obvious parallel lessons to real pet households." –The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

“Dinophiles and budding wordsmiths will be delighted.” –Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

2022-03-30
A well-armored sesquipedal-o-saur picks a “quintessential” companion in his second outing.

Word-loving Theo’s distress at seeing his prehistoric peers with proper pets dissipates after he latches on to a small and solitary saber tooth tiger: “I will call you Fang.” Unfortunately, the manic mammal proves hard to tame—digging holes in the lawn and leaping on all and sundry despite firm commands to “Seat oneself,” and “Remain.” Distress transmogrifies to delight, however, once Theo realizes that the problem is a simple failure to communicate, and if a switch from words to hisses and growls doesn’t calm the creature completely (“Fang was a little dramatic”), it does quickly put the kibosh on the worst of the bad behavior. Though not all the alternative locutions a “Defino-Dino” pops up to deliver will enlighten bumfuzzled readers (“Mischievous means troublesome”) and Moran’s decision to give Theo’s dad a necktie of the same color and pattern as Fang’s spotted hide in the cartoon illustrations leaves the toothy therapsid’s future perhaps in doubt, still the buddies’ bond is sealed with a closing clinch. The theme of finding and sharing a common language adds a buff to the basic vocabulary building. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Dinophiles and budding wordsmiths will be delighted. (glossary) (Picture book. 6-8)

Kirkus Reviews