Reviews

A welcome addition to the small number of Australian books with appeal to the very young, The Pocket Dogs will be an immediate favourite for storytime in libraries and kindergartens. This is a simpler text than many of Margaret Wild's stories, with a cast of three main characters: Mr Pockets and the two tiny dogs, Biff and Buff, who ride out each day in his coat pockets. Disaster strikes in the form of a hole in the right pocket, from which Biff falls into the scary world. Biff learns the hard way that he is not a basket dog, a toy-pram dog or a shopping-trolley dog, but a pocket dog. Stephen Michael King (Henry and Amy, Beetle Soup) brings an increasingly confident touch to depicting the daily round of the lovably eccentric Mr Pockets, the dogs and the people they meet. The characteristic blue tones of King's artwork deepen when poor Biff is most alone; a few spreads open up to spacious and idyllic scenes of water, grass and sky. C. 2000 Thorpe-Bowker and contributors

PreS-Gr 2-Mr. Pockets loves to take his two small dogs everywhere. Biff always rides in the right pocket of his blue plaid coat, and Buff in the left. While out and about one day, Biff notices a small hole in his pocket that begins to grow "bigger and bigger and bigger." He tries to tell his master, but can only manage a "Ruff! Ruff!" Buff warns Biff, "One day you will fall out of the pocket.-On to the ground. You might get lost!" Of course, the very next morning when the trio goes to the store, Biff falls onto the crowded floor, where all of the human legs surrounding him look alike. Several people come to the aid of the pup, putting him in their shopping cart, basket, or doll carriage. Biff doesn't like any of this, for he is a pocket dog. Having run away from his would-be rescuers, cowering on the floor and feeling scared and alone, he is finally found by his congenial master, who deftly sews up the hole. The soft-hued watercolor and pen-and-ink illustrations convey the warmth and whimsy that surround Mr. Pockets and his beloved pets. With its happy ending, this is a good choice for children who have worries about getting lost.-Lisa Gangemi Krapp, Middle Country Public Library, Centereach, NY Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

An Australian team confidently delivers a tale about overcoming fear. Mr. Pockets, a kindly middle-aged gentleman with a large nose and a polka-dot muffler, carries his two small dogs, Biff and Buff, in his overcoat pockets everywhere he goes. The right pocket has a hole, though, and he loses Biff when the seam opens and the dog falls out onto the supermarket floor. Several patrons offer to rescue Biff, but he isn't interested in making friends and runs away: "Biff didn't like being a shopping basket dog. He was a pocket dog, Mr. Pockets' pocket dog." Luckily, Mr. Pockets locates Biff after another suspenseful moment or two. Wild (Our Granny) uses short words and repetitive phrases to convey a depth of emotion. Along with the main theme of getting lost and separated, the book contains a premonitory dream of Biff's about becoming separated from his owner, plus a subplot about communication gaps the dogs try to warn Mr. Pockets about the fraying pocket, but for all his kindliness, he cannot understand them. King's (A Special Kind of Love) benevolent, well-padded people and child's-eye perspective of legs and carts add charm and credence to the tale: Biff's dream is scary without becoming too terrifying, and the portrayal of the kindly shoppers will reassure youngsters that Biff will be okay until he finds his way back to his rightful place. Ages 3-7. (Apr.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.