ONE PUP’S UP

When one pup wakes up, the rest are sure to follow. “2 puppies tumble. / 3 puppies roll / in a fuzzy puppy jumble,” and on up to ten. After a meal “in the Line-’em-up Café,” the countdown begins till “[t]he last pup sags. / All the puppies sleep. / No pups awake / in the furry puppy heap.” Cole’s watercolor-and-ink cartoons present a cheerfully motley assemblage of floppy-eared, short-legged, chubby-bellied puppies in a mix of solids and spots. They run, wrestle and munch with an abandon dog lovers will recognize and appreciate. Chall’s text romps as energetically as this mixed-breed litter, with a rhythm and verve that practically reads itself. It’s sure to be a read-aloud hit, and the author has considerately provided a natural resting place in the verse to give audiences time to crack up over “6 puppies piddle in the middle of the muddle” (the illustration shows the puppies sniffing a fire hydrant with interest). Almost as much fun as a real puppy, with none of the mess. (Picture book. 2-6)