Found

August 15, 2018
After losing their own beloved pet, a young child finds and returns a lost puppy in this wordless picture book from Newman and Day.On a rainy night, a forlorn pup wanders into a young child's view. The child doesn't hesitate to bring the little dog inside, and once the two are safe and dry inside, photos on the wall and a few abandoned dog toys reveal that the child has lost their own dog. The friendship between the pair is tentative at first, but as the little dog sweetly persists, the child's reticence melts away. But no sooner does the pair begin to bond than they come upon a flier with the pup's picture, and reluctantly the child gives up and returns their new friend. The quiet in this picture book goes far beyond a simple absence of words. The beautifully and visually crafted hush is a wellspring of emotion: the agony of loss, the exuberance of a sudden friendship, the resignation of a hard decision, and finally the guarded hope of a new beginning. Day's ink-and-watercolor illustrations shape the story and capture feeling--that most elusive of narrative dimensions--in effortless sequences of movement and masterful use of color and perspective. The child has fluffy, black hair and paper-white skin.A story that will break hearts so it can put them back together. (Picture book. 3-7)

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Starred review from October 1, 2018
In this wordless tale about a child who learns to love a new dog, a girl gazes out her apartment window on a rainy day and spots something below. A page turn reveals what she sees: a puppy wading miserably through a puddle. As the girl brings it inside, she pauses to gaze at a bedside photo that shows her hugging another dog; a “Missing” poster on her bulletin board reveals that dog’s destiny. Despite a tough moment when the new hound takes up her lost dog’s red ball, she shares an existing dog bed and food dish with the newcomer—only to find, on a trip to the pet shop, that this pup is “Missing,” too. The girl not only allows herself to love but also understands that her love isn’t as important as what this pup needs most. The pair’s all-too-brief idyll is gently and memorably drawn, and the girl’s independence in a big city—there are no parents in sight—allows focus on her interior journey and genuinely noble decision. Ages 4–8.

November 1, 2018

PreS-Gr 2-A wordless picture book about a young girl who, while mourning the loss of her missing dog Prudence, rescues a lost dog and faces the inevitable decisions that come with loving and letting go again. Rendered in pen and ink with splashes of subtle watercolor and vibrant gouache, Day's illustrations elegantly highlight Jenn's varied emotions. In a mostly stark, black-and-white world, the use of color for only certain objects, like Jenn's clothes and the dog she rescues, draws attention to the action of the story as well as the overall mood. On a rainy night, Jenn rescues the lost dog Roscoe. Readers soon realize why Jenn is sad. Her world is still mostly monochromatic, but slowly bursts forth into pure color as her heart opens to Roscoe. There is a series of vignettes with them running together, playing ball, and rolling around on the ground. It's when she ties Roscoe to a green telephone pole outside a pet store to buy things for him, that she notices the "Lost" sign with his picture. She wrestles with the choice of what to do. Jenn brings Roscoe back to his original owner and, downtrodden, walks past the Humane Society window, where a forlorn bulldog holds one paw against a window. The ending spread reveals a glimpse of the bulldog's tail disappearing into Jenn's kitchen. This is a beautiful wordless book about love in all its messiness and what it means to open your heart, experience loss, and then open it again. VERDICT A first purchase.-Rachel Zuffa, Case High School, Racine, WI

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2018
Preschool-G As a girl looks out of her upstairs window, she sees a bedraggled brown dog slogging through puddles in the alley. She jumps into action, carries him into the house, and provides him with a bowl of food and a soft bed. In one energetic two-page spread, the girl attempts puppy training: fetch, sit, and roll over (which results in panels of humorous play). When she sees a poster claiming that this very pup is actually someone else's dog, she is devastated but does the right thing, returning him to his owner. A happy ending comes when she sees a forlorn and hopeful boxer in the Humane Society shelter window. Pen-and-ink, watercolor, and gouache make the illustrations pop against the expansive white pages. The limited text and realistic pictures make this an easy tale for small children to follow. Expressive faces on the dog and child are full of emotion?viewers will see the thought process happening, and feel the love passing between the two companions.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)