by Kathleen Troy ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 3, 2022
A lovable multispecies cast propels a buoyant, endearing adventure.
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A 12-year-old boy and his four-legged pal clash with criminals—both human and animal—in this third installment of a middle-grade series.
Dylan’s Dog Squad has its very first case. Casey and his friend Sumo are on the lookout for a chimpanzee running loose in their Brea, California, neighborhood. But it’s Casey’s American cocker spaniel, Dylan, who’s truly leading the way, or rather his trusty nose is. Ten-year-old Holly hired the squad to find Bailey, a kleptomaniac chimp that her famous primatologist mother raises almost as a child. Holly wants this case kept on the down low, especially since Bailey is breaking the law every time he snatches people’s mail and packages. But the team’s zany but impressive recovery of Bailey lands on social media and goes viral. That’s why Holly’s grandfather (the mayor) employs the squad to act as Bailey’s bodyguards for a ribbon-cutting at the San Diego Zoo. Hilarity ensues thanks to Bailey’s sticky fingers and Dylan’s decision to chase the chimp when he runs. Back at home, Dylan works hard to pass the American Kennel Club Canine Good Citizen test at the Dream Big K-9 Academy. Sadly, this local school is in danger of shutting its doors. Covid-19 forced the owners to borrow money from the notorious criminal “The Sledgehammer,” whom they can’t pay back fast enough. Casey believes he, Sumo, and Dylan can help by getting their hands and paws on the loan papers. But that would put them uncomfortably close to a menacing thug.
Troy’s characters are a delightful bunch. Holly, for example, seems perpetually morose, certain she’s playing second fiddle to a primate; her mother even dressed Bailey and Holly alike when they were younger. Returning characters, such as Casey; his mother, Colleen; and Sumo are just as appealing as they’ve been in preceding books—they are considerate of others, whether or not they get along. But it’s Dylan’s series for a reason. His monologues (that humans can’t hear, of course) give the irresistible canine a voice that proves he’s usually smarter than the boys. And though he makes himself understood sans speech, for example, pawing Casey’s knee when something confuses him, Dylan’s pithy comments are endlessly amusing (“I don’t want to end up in the slammer”). Bailey is a nice addition to the series, a counterpart to Dylan’s humanlike monologues. Readers know right away that Dylan isn’t so keen on the chimp, but it takes time to decipher Bailey’s expressions and mannerisms to see what he’s trying to say. This lighthearted narrative has its share of tense moments involving an elevated gondola in San Diego and the unsurprisingly scary Sledgehammer. But these never outshine the comedy as Bailey gets himself into trouble and Casey and Sumo tease each other the way that only best friends can. Dylan showcases his brains time and again, like his knowledge of American sign language. Nevertheless, his best scenes display his familiar canine traits and his naïveté. This stubby-tailed dog is always ready for a bite to eat, and simple things mesmerize him, namely this “purple” (purple fruit, purple binoculars) that humans keep talking about.
A lovable multispecies cast propels a buoyant, endearing adventure.Pub Date: Oct. 3, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-959215-11-0
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Dylan and Friends Publishing Company
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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by Jeff Kinney ; illustrated by Jeff Kinney ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 5, 2019
Readers can still rely on this series to bring laughs.
The Heffley family’s house undergoes a disastrous attempt at home improvement.
When Great Aunt Reba dies, she leaves some money to the family. Greg’s mom calls a family meeting to determine what to do with their share, proposing home improvements and then overruling the family’s cartoonish wish lists and instead pushing for an addition to the kitchen. Before bringing in the construction crew, the Heffleys attempt to do minor maintenance and repairs themselves—during which Greg fails at the work in various slapstick scenes. Once the professionals are brought in, the problems keep getting worse: angry neighbors, terrifying problems in walls, and—most serious—civil permitting issues that put the kibosh on what work’s been done. Left with only enough inheritance to patch and repair the exterior of the house—and with the school’s dismal standardized test scores as a final straw—Greg’s mom steers the family toward moving, opening up house-hunting and house-selling storylines (and devastating loyal Rowley, who doesn’t want to lose his best friend). While Greg’s positive about the move, he’s not completely uncaring about Rowley’s action. (And of course, Greg himself is not as unaffected as he wishes.) The gags include effectively placed callbacks to seemingly incidental events (the “stress lizard” brought in on testing day is particularly funny) and a lampoon of after-school-special–style problem books. Just when it seems that the Heffleys really will move, a new sequence of chaotic trouble and property destruction heralds a return to the status quo. Whew.
Readers can still rely on this series to bring laughs. (Graphic/fiction hybrid. 8-12)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4197-3903-3
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Nov. 18, 2019
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by Jeff Kinney ; illustrated by Jeff Kinney
by Jeff Kinney ; illustrated by Jeff Kinney
by Jeff Kinney ; illustrated by Jeff Kinney
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by Jeff Kinney ; illustrated by Jeff Kinney
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by Jeff Kinney ; illustrated by Jeff Kinney
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SEEN & HEARD
by Peter Brown ; illustrated by Peter Brown ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 26, 2023
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant.
Robot Roz undertakes an unusual ocean journey to save her adopted island home in this third series entry.
When a poison tide flowing across the ocean threatens their island, Roz works with the resident creatures to ensure that they will have clean water, but the destruction of vegetation and crowding of habitats jeopardize everyone’s survival. Brown’s tale of environmental depredation and turmoil is by turns poignant, graceful, endearing, and inspiring, with his (mostly) gentle robot protagonist at its heart. Though Roz is different from the creatures she lives with or encounters—including her son, Brightbill the goose, and his new mate, Glimmerwing—she makes connections through her versatile communication abilities and her desire to understand and help others. When Roz accidentally discovers that the replacement body given to her by Dr. Molovo is waterproof, she sets out to seek help and discovers the human-engineered source of the toxic tide. Brown’s rich descriptions of undersea landscapes, entertaining conversations between Roz and wild creatures, and concise yet powerful explanations of the effect of the poison tide on the ecology of the island are superb. Simple, spare illustrations offer just enough glimpses of Roz and her surroundings to spark the imagination. The climactic confrontation pits oceangoing mammals, seabirds, fish, and even zooplankton against hardware and technology in a nicely choreographed battle. But it is Roz’s heroism and peacemaking that save the day.
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9780316669412
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
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More by Aaron Reynolds
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by Aaron Reynolds ; illustrated by Peter Brown
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by Peter Brown ; illustrated by Peter Brown
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by Peter Brown ; illustrated by Peter Brown
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