No dogs allowed
(Book)

Frequent collaborators Calmenson and Cole begin the Ready Set, Dogs! series with a peppy story that takes the notion of dog-loving kids to the extreme. Best friends Kate and Lucie are obsessed with dogs, but live in an apartment complex that prohibits them. At a thrift shop, the two try on necklaces with a dog-bone motif and-by high-fiving and uttering "Woofa-woof!"-morph into dogs themselves. (Riffing on the joke that dogs and their owners can sometimes resemble each other, Ross's cartoons show a humorous likeness between the girls' human and canine selves.) Switching species at will, Kate and Lucie help lead three stray dogs to a shelter and taunt "the two most annoying boys on the planet," who are bent on capturing and adopting them. In the story's feel-good ending, the girls and boys join forces to win an Adopt-a-Dog Week songwriting contest. Good-natured banter and silliness ("Stop sniffing me!" "I can't help it. Everything smells amazing-even you!") move the story along at a brisk pace. Ages 6-9. Authors' agent: Brenda Bowen, Sanford J. Greenburger Associates. Illustrator's agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Gr 2-5-Dog-loving best friends Katie and Lucie live next door to one another in an apartment building with an unfortunate rule: NO DOGS ALLOWED. On a trip to the neighborhood thrift shop, the girls try on matching pink dog bone-shaped necklaces and discover that the jewelry holds the power to turn its wearers into dogs. Fortunately, they quickly figure out how to turn back into girls, and they have fun shape-shifting at will for the remainder of the story. Lucie and Katie join forces with two boys to write the winning submission for a local radio contest promoting Adopt-a-Dog Week. Back matter includes dog jokes, true stories about heroic dogs, and the authors' real-life dog ownership tales. Occasional black-and-white drawings highlight key characters and scenes, such as a humorous scene of the girls, in dog form, digging holes in a garden as their mothers look on with shocked expressions. This fun, quick read will have young dog lovers sitting up and begging for the next book in the series.-Amanda Struckmeyer, Middleton Public Library, Madison, WI (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Pup-crazy best friends Kate and Lucie, who live in a no-dogs-allowed apartment building, find magical necklaces that turn them into dogs whenever they wish. In addition to having an appealing premise, this series-opener is also a great introduction to dog rescue and adoption. Whimsical and expressive black-and-white spot- and full-page drawings are a welcome addition to the lively text. (c) Copyright 2014. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Frequent collaborators Calmenson and Cole begin the Ready Set, Dogs! series with a peppy story that takes the notion of dog-loving kids to the extreme. Best friends Kate and Lucie are obsessed with dogs, but live in an apartment complex that prohibits them. At a thrift shop, the two try on necklaces with a dog-bone motif and—by high-fiving and uttering "Woofa-woof!"—morph into dogs themselves. (Riffing on the joke that dogs and their owners can sometimes resemble each other, Ross's cartoons show a humorous likeness between the girls' human and canine selves.) Switching species at will, Kate and Lucie help lead three stray dogs to a shelter and taunt "the two most annoying boys on the planet," who are bent on capturing and adopting them. In the story's feel-good ending, the girls and boys join forces to win an Adopt-a-Dog Week songwriting contest. Good-natured banter and silliness ("Stop sniffing me!" "I can't help it. Everything smells amazing—even you!") move the story along at a brisk pace. Ages 6–9. Authors' agent: Brenda Bowen, Sanford J. Greenburger Associates. Illustrator's agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (Oct.)

Gr 2–5—Dog-loving best friends Katie and Lucie live next door to one another in an apartment building with an unfortunate rule: NO DOGS ALLOWED. On a trip to the neighborhood thrift shop, the girls try on matching pink dog bone-shaped necklaces and discover that the jewelry holds the power to turn its wearers into dogs. Fortunately, they quickly figure out how to turn back into girls, and they have fun shape-shifting at will for the remainder of the story. Lucie and Katie join forces with two boys to write the winning submission for a local radio contest promoting Adopt-a-Dog Week. Back matter includes dog jokes, true stories about heroic dogs, and the authors' real-life dog ownership tales. Occasional black-and-white drawings highlight key characters and scenes, such as a humorous scene of the girls, in dog form, digging holes in a garden as their mothers look on with shocked expressions. This fun, quick read will have young dog lovers sitting up and begging for the next book in the series.—Amanda Struckmeyer, Middleton Public Library, Madison, WI