Larry Gets Lost Under the Sea

by John Skewes, Eric Ode

The bestselling Larry Gets Lost series heads down to the ocean in this picture book featuring vibrant retro illustrations of sea life and the perpetually lost pup, Larry.


At the beach with Pete and his family, Larry the lovable pup follows a crustacean toward the sea and is swept out by a giant wave. He dog paddles around, exploring the plant and animal life before coming face-to-face with an oceanographer who leads him on a thrilling adventure through the layers of the ocean before he’s finally reunited with his best friend, Pete, back at the beach. This fun and educational book includes a Common Core teacher’s guide.

Genres: Picture Books, Nonfiction, Childrens, Science

32 pages, Hardcover

First published March 3, 2015

Reviews

[Allyson Goose · Rating 4 out of 5]

My preschooler and kindergartener are very interested in the ocean, so we've read this book a lot! I learned a lot about the layers of the ocean, which animals live in which layers, and how a bathyscaphe (like a submarine you can go in to research the deep ocean). It's nice to a have a plot, too. I like that you can either just read it for the plot or read all the captions to learn lots more. I would have given it five stars, but the main characters are all male (the dog, the researcher and Pete the Kid) and the people are all white; I prefer books that show other kinds of protagonists to spark children's imaginations.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

My 5 year old had really enjoyed all we’ve read in this series.

[Beth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Surprise another STEM book. It's okay. There is a cute story but it is interrupted by blocks of factoids about sea life. If I was distracted, imagine how a child would feel? Also while the illustrations are bold and bright, the digital composition makes it feel cold and sterile which in my opinion is the opposite of what life in the sea should be.

[Joanne Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

A departure for this series, the book takes Larry under the ocean to explore topography, wildlife, and even a bit about undersea vehicles. This one is more science-y than geographic, but I think it makes a nice addition to the Larry and Pete books. Skilled use of color in the graphic and cartoony illustrations. Teacher resources included.

[Amanda Boehm · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love that you can read this book in two ways: for read-aloud I read the rhyming story which was great, but then if I wanted a more interactive reading experience I could read through all the additional facts. I like that the labels throughout the illustrations - the kids were like "I know what that is, it's a spider crab!" And I could say "it sure is!" because it was labeled and then all the kids were very impressed haha. I like how bright, colorful, and fun the illustrations are. Kids had a great time with this book.

[kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

okay

[Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book for kids of all ages interested in Marine Biology. Multiple depths of information on each page for a deep dive for older kids and also a surface read for the youngest kids.

[Ashley Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another adventure in which, you guessed it, Larry gets lost. This time, his adventure takes him under water, giving young readers the opportunity to try out nonfiction while learning seaside vocabulary.

[Alexus Houfek · Rating 5 out of 5]

APA Citation: Skewes, J. (2014). Larry Gets Lost Under the Sea. Seattle, Washington: Little Bigfoot, an imprint of Sasquatch Books.

Summary: This story is about a boy named Pete and his dog Larry. Pete’s family goes to the beach, where Larry gets lost. Larry was watching animals in the water when a big wave came and swept him up. Larry was swimming underwater when a man with a mask grabbed him. This man was a driver of a submarine. Larry was now exploring the sea while being in a submarine. Larry explores all the different animals in the sea. He also explores the different levels of the sea. Does Larry ever make it back to Pete?

Activity: Bloom 4, Analyzing; Most interesting facts from the book.

This book has many facts as side notes throughout the story. While reading the book I would not read the facts. After reading the book, I would go back through and read the facts. Afterwards, the students will have to choose either their favorite fact or favorite part of the book and that parts fact. The students will then have to describe that fact with sentences, words, or pictures. Once everyone is done, I would hang their facts up in the hallway under a sign that says “Sea Facts from Larry” with a picture of a dog by it.

[Emily Bowlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book, published in Seattle Washington, is full of fun surprises. It has a very cute story line accompanied by amazing illustrations that young students will love but it is also packed with fun facts about the sea. The book is fiction but I love that I can use it to relate students to sea life and to teach them about science such as food webs, tide pools, mammals and global warming. With all of these aspects I had to put this book on my favorites list and it will be one that I will purchase and keep.

[Patricia N. McLaughlin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting ocean facts and vivid artwork are marred by the preposterous storyline of Larry's anaerobic undersea adventure. Let Pete get swept away by the wave, where his imagination can take him to the ocean depths.

[West Hartford Children's Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great adventure Larry has! He accidentally ends up in a small submarine that travels to the deep depths of the ocean. The author tells a wonderful story as well as adding interesting facts about the myriad animals of the oceans.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picturebook / nonfiction elements. Very cute. I hear Larry is a series and I will be ordering the others. It also has great rhyme.

[Bethany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute story and added factual information for the reader, which makes it a bit busy.

[Christine Turner]

ATA Wonder Kit -- Oceans

Subject: Marine animals -- Juvenile literature
Underwater exploration -- Juvenile literature