Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Book Review: Skunkdog (dog, children)


Skunkdog, by Emily Jenkins (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2008, 30 pages, $16.95) 

Just what is a skunkdog, anyway?

Dog Gets ‘Skunked’ by New ‘Friend’

Little girls will love the sweet story, little boys will love the ribald ‘skunkiness,’ and parents will commiserate with the foibles of having a dog in the family – the exuberance, the throwing up in the car, . . . .

The Star of our Story – A functionally noseless, definitely friendless, but nicely obedient and brave Dumpling!

Every human and animal character in the book has an unusual nose – usually a big one – even the skunk.

Dumpling the dog, however, even with his oversized canine nose, smells nothing. . . .nothing - which gets him into trouble and helps him  find a friend. How can that be?

Lessons

The only drawback to this book, which can serve as a conversation starter for the family as a whole, is the dog’s living arrangement - in the backyard in a doghouse rather than inside with his boy. Also talkable aboutable is why not to drag a dog by the collar.

The Lonely Dumpling Finds a Friend at Last, But. . . .

The family moves to the country and Dumpling makes a new friend, a skunky friend. But is the skunk really a friend?

The family learns by trial and error, the best way to deskunk a dog. You will too (added bonus).

Recommendation

Cute illustrations – the inside cover shows a bush with a wagging tail and two shoes (obviously on an upside-down kid) poking above it.

Whimsical phrases to savor on your tongue.

Lovely book about friendship.

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