Hey, Boy

Starred review from March 15, 2017
A boy meets a dog, and together they embark on a friendship that endures separation, age, and reunion. Once there was a boy who loved a dog. Under star-filled skies he would tell the dog of -the adventures they would have and the games they would play.- When his mother proclaims he's not old enough to care for the animal, the heartbroken, white child determinedly tries to grow up, but he's not fast enough. His dog is adopted, and while kind new owners allow him to visit, he never stops dreaming of a future with his pal. As time passes, his visits become less frequent and life more complex, until one day he's grown. When the owners can no longer care for the dog, the boy (now an adult) finally brings the black dog home. Strouse and Phelan perfectly complement each other in this meditation on the passage of time. Deceivingly simple text and illustrations belie the complex themes and artistic skill of its creators. In pacing and use of negative white space, the two channel Shel Silverstein's The Giving Tree. However, this existential work is more Zen-like. Phelan's smartly designed spreads take readers on a visual journey from cover to end pages, and as the adult boy tells his old friend once more about the adventures they will have, his dreams unfold like the wind. Luminous. (Picture book. 4-8)

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June 1, 2017

PreS-Gr 2-A true bond will last even when individuals are separated for long periods of time. Such is the case with the unnamed boy and dog in this touching picture book. When the boy adopts the pup, they dream of all the adventures they will have together. Sadly, an accident prevents this, and the boy has to give up the dog until he has "grown up." He stays in touch with his friend's adoptive owners and visits when he can. Time passes, then more, and just when readers think there is no hope, the boy and the dog's dreams come true. Strouse's plainspoken narrative will choke readers up a bit as the boy matures and the dog grows older. Any reader who has had a pet will reflect on the time that they have lost. That being said, neither character dwells on what could have been, so the ending has an air of contentment. In conjunction with the text, the infographic-like designs are quite poignant; children's hearts will ache to see the little black puppy staring forlornly from behind bars. Most pages feature little other than the characters and a few objects on a white background. However, for emotional beats, color and background expand to fill the page in order to better influence the tone. VERDICT Readers will find a fair amount of emotional depth in this story about the bond between man and dog. Probably best shared one-on-one, with a box of tissues nearby.-Rachel Forbes, Oakville Public Library, Ont.

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2017
Preschool-G The usual boy-and-dog story takes a twist and a turn when the boy finds a stray but it is adopted by another family. The boy had dreamed of all the adventures they would have, so it's a devastating blow. Happily, the new owners offer him a chance to come and visit often. The boy grows, graduates, travels, and gets a job, but he never stops missing his aging friend. Then the owners become too old to care for the dog: Ready or not, he was going to bring the dog home. The retro artwork, done in pen and ink and colored digitally, is presented on spare pages against a stark white background. A red-orange ball, repeated endlessly in massed clusters on the endpapers, appears on almost every page, echoed in the boy's red shirt, the sheep's fleecy coats, a hot-air balloon, and a backpackjust spots of color against grays and blacks. A bittersweet story of love and loss, reconciliation and aging.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)