Bella's Rules

K-Gr 2—Bella knows her family's rules but she doesn't like to follow them. She makes up her own, therefore misbehaving a lot. When a babysitter comes for the evening, she takes advantage of him and truly endangers herself and ruins property. When her parents come home, they have a conversation with her about her behavior and insist that she write a letter of apology to the sitter. When Grandma arrives a few days later with a surprise for Bella, a puppy, the child is overjoyed, and they soon become best friends. But soon Puppy starts behaving like the youngster that he is. He jumps on Bella and eats her cupcake. He leaves muddy footprints on her bedspread. He chews up her favorite teddy bear. Bella unfriends him. At this point, the family steps in and together they teach the dog how to behave. And in the process, Bella learns about the importance of following rules. The cheerful illustrations are done in colored pencils and watercolors and clearly convey the exuberant pup's actions. However, children might have trouble picking up on the lesson as it seems as though her grandmother is rewarding Bella's inappropriate behavior. The moment of clarity is too far away.—Ieva Bates, Ann Arbor District Library, MI