Genre: Humor; Animals; Comic
Protagonists: Animals (male dogs, female cat)
Reading level: 400s
Series: Appears to be complete with three titles
Originally reviewed in October 2020
Review: Crackers, a perky blue dog who goes "crackers" when squirrels appear on HIS porch and Butter, a plump marmalade cat with a penchant for licking butter, have a good life. Until a puppy named Peanut shows up!
Crackers is not too thrilled with this know-nothing puppy that has shown up. He doesn't like sharing his water bowl, toys, or backyard and Peanut is noisy and needy and not house-trained! Butter is mostly indifferent - she is, after all, a cat, but even she can't take much more of Peanut's annoying habits. So one night, when Peanut is being more annoying than usual, she leaves a gate open. Problem solved, no more Peanut. But Crackers has second thoughts. After all, he and Butter were once scared and alone, with no family. Maybe Peanut is annoying, but he needs a family too, just like they did - and they set out to bring a lost, lonely puppy back to a real home.
I am thrilled to see a new, easy graphic novel from Paige Braddock, although it doesn't quite hit the high notes of humor and science in Stinky Cecil, which will remain my favorite. An author's note at the end talks about family pets and her love of Peanuts comics, which she now writes. Her art does have a little of a Peanuts look to it, but it's all her own. This one is in blues and purples, with orange and green highlights. The night scenes are dark purple and the action focuses on the animals, with the occasional outside animal or pair of human hands.
Verdict: Readers moving on from Elephant and Piggie now have a wide and delightful range of choices and this is another that is sure to please readers. This would be just right for kids who aren't quite ready for Bad Kitty yet. Recommended.
Revisited: These are available in hardcover or paperback and they are reliably popular with young readers. A staple for library shelves.
ISBN: 9780593117439; Published September 2020 by Viking; Review copy provided by publisher; Donated to the library
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