Dogs Don't Brush Their Teeth

Do dogs brush their teeth? Do they drive cars or play in a musical band? Dogs Don't Brush Their Teeth! asks, and answers these and many other silly questions about dogs in a delightlful way that will have youngsters laughing and eager to turn the page. In this book, young readers are asked what dogs do in a silly and imaginative way. First, we see a picture of a dog lying on the floor eating out of a dog dish. The caption reads, "Dogs Do". With the use of fold-out pages, we're shown what "Dogs Don't" and in this example, there's the same dog sitting at the dinner table, cutting his meat with a steak knife. Dogs do eat dog bones, but they don't floss their teeth! Dogs do sniff to say hi but they don't shake hands, er, paws. Authors deGroat and Rotner have mixed photos of real dogs (Rotner is a photographer) with drawings of objects around the dogs to create a funky real world/imaginary world scenario. At the end of the book are photos of all the participating dogs along with their names and breeds. I'm not sure how the photographer and owners managed to get their dogs to pose in all the odd and funny stances, but they are to be congratulated for their patience. Quill says: If your child loves dogs, he/she should love Dogs Don't Brush Their Teeth!

My colleague and I chortled as we looked through this amusing picture book. The title page shows four dogs: one wearing a ballet skirt and twirling in the air, another riding a skateboard, one spinning a hula hoop, and the fourth blowing bubble gum. A combination of photographs and digital art with a simple humorous premise provide a visual treat that will delight both children and adults in a family story time. Using foldouts, a dog is pictured first doing something natural on a half sheet, this then opens out to reveal on a full page something a dog does not do: dogs do fetch sticks, dogs don't play baseball, dogs do catch balls, dogs don't play tennis. The photographs present a variety of very cute dogs: Photoshop is ingeniously used to put braces in a dog's mouth, show a dog pushing a baby carriage, and depict three canines playing musical instruments. A double spread at the back of the book identifies each lovable pooch by name and breed. Book received free from publisher.

My son loves the silly pictures. With minimal words, the book encourages children to discribe the silliness, to discuss the difference, and hence great for developing their verbal and cognitive skills. Thumbs Up from mom, too!

In a departure from her usual style, Diane de Groat has created a real winner! Along with her friend, photographer Shelley Rotner, Diane de Groat's new book is going to be a Christmas gift to everyone I know. The funny situations will get even a non dog lover giggling & the fold out pages are just plain fun. When kids ( & adults) go the the book's website, they'll see the interesting way the 2 worked together to create this unique book. Don't miss it! Cathy Bonnell, Librarian Phoenix, AZ