Froggy Gets a Doggy

December 15, 2013
Froggy returns for another minor adventure in his well-documented life with this 23rd outing. This time, Froggy wants to get a dog. His mother reluctantly agrees to the idea of a pet, though she thinks a dog would be too messy. After breakfast, Froggy, his mother and baby sister Pollywogilina set off together for the animal shelter, where they examine different kinds of pets. His mother suggests a bunny, white mice or even a baby alligator. But Froggy craves a canine companion, and he falls in love with a gray dog with "sweet chocolate brown eyes" that even his mother finds irresistible. They take the dog home, and as Froggy learns how to care for Doggy, he discovers that supervising a bouncy dog is not as easy as he first thought. The text is not particularly funny, offering a couple of stale setups with a pooper-scooper, as well as an episode in which Doggy drags out Mom's pink underpants in front of Froggy's friend Frogilina. Cheery illustrations in watercolor and pencil do their best to add to the humor with amusing expressions on the characters' faces and jaunty poses that capture Froggy's confident personality. Die-hard Froggy fans may enjoy his latest small adventure, but this doesn't offer anything new in the crowded let's-get-a-dog pack. (Picture book. 3-7)

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January 1, 2014

PreS-Gr 1-In this long running series, Froggy has played soccer and T-ball, learned to swim, gone on a play date, baked a cake, and vacationed in Hawaii, among other things. Now he gets a dog. As the family searches for the best pet, he is determined to bring home a puppy even though his mother tells him how much work it will be. Though the pup isn't all Froggy expected-in one scene he fetches mom's underwear instead of a stick-Froggy bonds with the pet after cuddling in bed and waking up to wet puppy kisses. Froggy is a bit dismayed when the day begins again with a trip outside with the dreaded pooper scooper. London writes with a focus on creating a lively read-aloud experience, while offering an important lesson about responsibility. The saturated cartoon images of this iconic series show lots of movement. Froggy fans will enjoy this latest installment.-Jennifer Miskec, Longwood University, Farmville, VA

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