SPARKY

Sparky is an engaging, brown-and-black puppy experiencing his first day in his new home with a little girl named Mary. The oversized format includes gouache paintings on double-page spreads with an extra-large type size and simple sentences. Though Sparky is spunky, the text is not, plodding along through a day of play and activities in Dick-and-Jane fashion with a surfeit of exclamation points that fail to stir up much excitement. The illustrations of Mary have an oddly unsettling aspect as she sometimes looks rather robotic, and her large, pale-green eyes are often staring blankly in a different direction than her dog. The volume’s well-designed cover seems promising, with a smiling Sparky showing off his puppy-dog charms against a bright orange background, but the story itself lacks sparkle. (Picture book. 2-4)