What Is Your Dog Doing?

Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

Marilyn Singer, illus. by Kathleen Habbley. S&S/Atheneum, $12.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-4169-7931-9 Newcomer Habbley brings 1960s cartoon–style spreads bursting with color and action to Singer's (Mirror, Mirror) direct, telegraphic lines: "Dog sharing/ Dog daring/ Dog in a chase/ Dog in disgrace./Brilliant dog that loves to herd,/ Famous dog that gets chauffeured." "Dog sharing" shows a hound with a goofy expression pushing his stuffed toy toward a demure poodle with beribboned ears—a spread in which the blue of the toy, the umber of the hound's fur, and the white of the poodle vibrate against a field of solid red. For "Dog daring," a small, white terrier rides in the sidecar of a motorcycle, zooming straight toward viewers. "Dog in a chase" is a bathtub escapee, and the "Dog in disgrace" is a doleful basset hound who holds a tulip in his mouth and wears a "Who, me?" expression, the whole given warmth and energy by the bright orange background. The combination of matte pages and intense colors creates a silk-screen-like effect, and the crisp edges of the shapes please, too. A companion volume about cats would be just the thing. Ages 3–7.

—Publishers Weekly, April 25, 2011

School Library Journal

Kirkus Reviews

Snappy illustrations and a short, rhyming text depict a collection of canines in humorous activities from dreaming and scheming to shedding and sledding in this fetching story suitable as a read-aloud for young children or for newly independent readers.

The patterned text uses just a few words per page to describe each dog's behavior or condition, with the appealing pups alternating between playful or mischievous activities and useful ones. Several specific canine breeds are shown engaging in their own specialty: a German shepherd as a police dog and a border collie herding sheep, for example. A few of the canine behaviors will need explanation by an adult, such as "dog wired" for an overactive pup or "dog in disgrace" for a dog who has tracked mud into the house. The collie in the "famous dog that gets chauffeured" illustration will be recognizable to those who grew up with black-and-white TV, but probably not to today's children. Each of these illustrations provides an opportunity for discussion, however, introducing rich vocabulary into a super-short text. Computer-generated art from first-time illustrator Habbley uses a contemporary palette and crisp graphics to provide jazzy images of the adorable dogs. From a tiny Chihuahua "snug in a purse" to a huge St. Bernard, each dog has an engaging face and expression.

Amiable and entertaining, just like a well-behaved canine companion. (Picture book. 3-7)