Title: Babymouse: Puppy Love (#8)
Author: Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm
Illustrator: (if different than author)
Genre: Graphic Novel
Theme(s): Mice, Pets, Responsibility
Opening line/sentence:
Man’s best friend. Always there. In good times and bad.
Brief Book Summary: Babymouse does not have a great track record with pets, but she really wants a puppy. Mom says no, so baby gets a parade of pets who all go missing. Babymouse learns to train a dog, and surprises everyone because of it.
Professional Recommendation/Review #1: Horn Books
93 pp. Random (Random House Children's Books) 2007. LE
(2) 1-3 series. Mom vetoes a puppy, so Babymouse settles for a hamster, who quickly escapes. Hammy is followed by a turtle, ferret, salamander, etc.--all of whom vamoose. A stray dog gives our unlucky-with-pets heroine the chance to redeem herself. Babymouse's daydreams and (mis)adventures, shown in the loose-handed, pink-tinged illustrations, are as silly and sassy as ever in this eighth book about her.
Professional Recommendation/Review #2: PSU Libraries
Tanya D. Auger, Horn Book Magazine
When Goldy #5 goes belly-up, Babymouse is dead set against owning "another dumb fish." Mom vetoes a puppy, so Babymouse settles for a hamster instead. In record time, Hammy escapes. (His new owner, uh, left his cage open.) Hammy is soon followed by a turtle, a ferret, a salamander, and so on-and all vamoose with lightning speed. Where, oh where, have they gone? Babymouse never finds out, but readers do, thanks to the loose-handed, pink-tinged illustration showing the missing animals cavorting beneath a disco ball under Babymouse's bed. A stray dog gives our unlucky-with-pets heroine the chance to redeem herself, and she trains Buddy with the "biscuit method"-à la Pavlov-to sit, fetch, scrub, bake, and even calculate. Babymouse's success amazes everyone, including the dog's real owner, who, at book's end, strolls off into the sunset with "Lady." (Oops, Buddy's a girl!) Babymouse's daydreams and (mis)adventures are as silly as ever, but it's her interactions with the buttinsky narrator that make for some of the funniest sequences. When the narrator scoffs at the name Hammy, Babymouse retorts, "All right, smarty-pants. What would you name him?" "How about 'the handsome narrator'?" is the sassy reply.
Response to Two Professional Reviews: Both of these reviews are positive. Additionally, they both talk about the sassiness of the writing in this book. The first review explains that this book is silly, so that is what makes it great for young readers. The second review also applauds the writing in this book.
Evaluation of Literary Elements: The limited colors used in this book add to it. The words on the page were not overwhelming to read. The comic aspect of this book really enhanced it and made it that much more great. The font is a great size for new readers, and none of the pages have overwhelming amounts of words.
Consideration of Instructional Application: I would start a discussion with my students about why it is important to be responsible with pets. I would ask the children if any of them have any pets. Also, I would ask my students who do have pets what responsibilities come along with them. This could be turned into a lesson about taking care of animals and treating them well.