(An) effervescent picture book Kirkus Star
Polly belongs to Molly; Eric belongs to Derek and Martha is with Arthur. Have you seen a pattern? But who will take care of Mr Scruff. He is living in the dog shelter but he really needs a new friend. Then along comes Jim. Mum and dad are not sure Mr Scruff is the right match for Jim but Jim is absolutely certain the match is perfect. In the final scenes another dog lover arrives at the shelter - Mr Gruff. He spies a little pup called Tim! Here is a close up of one illustration from the book - this is Mick with his friend Rick.
The twist in this story is sure to give your young reading companion a huge smile. This book is a must read for all dog lovers. The illustrations by Simon James are filled with joy, diversity and movement. I love the way he totally captures the personality of each of these dogs (and their owners). All of this is done in just over 200 words!
I was not at all surprised to discover Mr Scuff is published by Walker Books UK. They always publish excellent children's titles. Take a look at Simon James web page to see more of his wonderful books. Here is a 2008 interview with Simon by Just One More Book. You can see the whole book of Mr Scruff here.
When your dog loving child grows older you might read some chapter books on the theme of finding the right dog such as Choosing Crumble and One Dog and His boy. For young children I would pair Mr Scruff with these three picture books and one junior novel:
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