My Pet Book

K-Gr 2—Every child wants a pet, but if one has allergies or limited space, it might be hard to find a pet that fits comfortably into one's lifestyle. "Most pets, you know, are cats and dogs./Go out and take a look./But there's a boy in Smartytown/Whose pet is…a little book." As difficult as it is to choose just one book for a pet, a little red volume with a tight binding stands out as a perfect choice in the bookstore. That is, until the boy returns home one day to find that the maid has mistakenly donated his pet book to a charity. They race to the thrift shop to try to recover it before the shop closes. The book is found, hiding in a safe place. The digital illustrations are wonderful—colorful, exaggerated, and whimsical. Readers will enjoy the silly details, like the depictions of some of the nasty behaviors of "other" pets. This book will tickle readers who have or long for pets. The rhyming scheme is reliable and children will enjoy predicting the last word in a stanza.—Mary Hazelton, formerly at Warren & Waldoboro Elementary Schools, ME