Dogs at Work and Play

Sally’s Bookshelf is Going To the Dogs – all month long. Today I’m sharing two spring releases from National Geographic Children’s Books.

theme: dogs, nonfiction

Doggy Defenders: Cadi the Farm Dog 
by Lisa M. Gerry; photographs by Lori Epstein
48 pages; ages 4 - 8

Cadi is a border collie. She lives on a farm with her family, the Bakers.

Like everyone else on the farm, Cadi has a job to do. Her job: take care of the cows. When she’s not herding cows, Cadi checks up on the other farm animals – the goats, ducks, chickens – and helps keep an eye on the vegetable garden.

What I like about this book: Cadi is much like our neighbor’s farm dog, Spencer. He “helps” with so many things, but his big job is making sure the chickens are safe. So I totally love seeing a book about farm dogs. I also like the back matter. One spread features a Q&A with Jessie Baker, the farmer and another is “Cadi’s Animal Care Tips” to help young readers learn how to be better friends with animals. This book is part of the Doggy Defenders series featuring Dolley the Fire Dog, Stella the Search Dog, Tiger the Police Dog, and Willow the Therapy Dog. I’m looking forward to more books in the series.

Just Joking Dogs 
by National Geographic Kids
208 pages; ages 8 - 12

The title says it all: it is page after belly-laugh page of dog jokes. Here’s a couple:

What kind of dog works in a library?
A hush puppy!

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Pup.
Pup who?
Pup-eroni pizza.

And there’s even a joke for our neighbor’s farm dog:
Why did the dog cross the road?
He was following the chickens.

Beyond the Books:

Make up your own dog joke or two. If you need help, ask a dog! If you don’t have a dog, ask your friend’s dog. A stuffed dog will do in a pinch.

Next time you’re out and about, pay attention to the kinds of dogs you see. You might see dogs playing Frisbee in a park, or taking their humans for a walk. Or you might see dogs on the job, such as a farm dog or service animal.

Today we're joining Perfect Picture Book Friday, an event where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copies provided by Media Masters Publicity.