John Stadler

I liked this book because it had dogs as the characters. This makes the book more relatable to a wider variety of readers. I like how the author uses a variety of descriptive words to describe the tone of the character's speaking. Examples of some of these words are: yelled, shrieked, sighed, cheering, and moaned. I didn't like that the book did not seem to be relevant to modern language. Younger readers may need to look up or ask an adult about many of the words and phrases used in the book. For example, the phrase "down and out" and the words, "crummy" and "buster". The big idea of this book is to adapt to the challenges life presents you and to work towards new accomplishments. In the book, Hector was successful because he was so smart, then he smarts were no longer valued when he ran into a wall and his nose turned into an accordion. He could do nothing other than play music with his nose and he wasn't very good at first. He was very sad until he learned to play his music beautifully. He was then just as successful as before.… (mer)

Cats, cats, and more cats! The Cats of Mrs. Calamari is a cute book about love and family. Mrs. Calamari moves into a new apartment where the owner, Mr. Gangplank, does not want any cats in his complex. Every time he visits Mrs. Calamari's apartment, he suspects that cats are living there, but Mrs. Calamari insist that they are her relatives. After a week of thinking that the cats are her relatives Mr. Gangplank finds his glasses and realizes that they really are cats. He then feels the amount of love that Mrs. Calamari has for her cats. They are family to her, just like any pet should be. He lifts the "No Cats" rule, and marries Mrs. Calamari.

This would be a great book to read to 1st or 2nd graders to teach them about compassion for animals as well to love all as family.… (mer)