Blue Wolf Reviews

Tag: puppy

  • I Lost My Granny in the Supermarket

    I Lost My Granny in the Supermarket

    Now, just how much trouble can one Grannie get into when she and her grandson Harry set out to go to an award giving ceremony. Well, as it turns out, lots and lots as you will discover in Jo Simmons latest, hilariously funny I Lost My Grannie in the Supermarket.

    Harry is asked to go with his Grannie, Millie, to an award ceremony. Grannie has won an award for being ‘Caught Short’ and is to get a lifetime achievement award, which is a pretty big deal when you are a Grannie.

    Now Grannie is short and feisty, while Harry is very tall for an eleven-year-old so you can already imagine how that is going to look, but Harry, who desperately wants a puppy, has been on a mission to gain puppy points. He makes the most of this bribing his Mum to give him 50 puppy points for giving up his afternoon with his friends.

    He thinks it can’t be that hard going with Grannie, but what he doesn’t know, is Grannie has other plans, very different other plans. Poor Harry!

    One thing his Mum says to him is ‘Don’t Let Grannie eat toffees’ as it makes her go funny, but before they go to the awards at the Metro Hotel, Grannie needs to get a new outfit, a haircut and a few other things, which is when things begin to go a bit wrong, then very wrong and even terribly, terribly wrong. How, says Harry in a panic could he possibly have lost his Grannie in the supermarket, because he has and even he, from his height can’t find her! And when he does: Oh boy!

    Nathan Reed has joined in the fun with his quirky illustrations which just add to the fun as Harry and Grannie, along with a little bit of help from a few others, manage to create mayhem in a single afternoon.

    Once again Jo Simmons has created a funny, laugh out loud story that is great fun, with easy to reads text perfect for the 7-9-year-old reader, and let’s face it, even slightly older readers who love a good laugh.

  • COOKIE

    COOKIE

    Cookie is a small dog who is the narrator of this story. His simple dialogue and understated discourse are humorous and insightful. What he leaves unsaid fills in the picture for us. His early memories are of being in a “Shaky box for a long time.” This begins the story and reveals the part he plays in helping a young girl with depression.

    When Cookie came out of the box, he was greeted by Girl…. Who had a ball! The girl took Cookie for many long walks where he found many great smells. At night, she would tuck Cookie into his bed and sleep by him in hers. Then one day, Girl was sad, she didn’t want to play. Cookie took her a present which she loved, but she was still sad.

    As the story progresses, we see that the sadness which affects the girl also affects the family. Cookie’s relationship with the girl continues to be solid and loving and never changing. As they grow together, their understanding of each other deepens. Nothing can change the way the girl is, but Cookie certainly helps with his nurturing nature.

    The large illustrations and interesting artwork in this book make it a pleasure to read. The humour of hearing the story told by the dog is gentle and caring. There is also humour in the text, such as the boy called “Stopit.”  It is important for younger readers to acknowledge that feeling sad is normal, and there are ways we can help our feelings to improve. This is an important concept for us to learn.

  • News Hounds: The Puppy Problem

    News Hounds: The Puppy Problem

    Moving homes isn’t always easy. Gizmo, ‘sausage’ dog and prince of the urban jungle, moves from the only home he has ever known in the city, to the country with his owner Grannie.  How will he survive? But Gizmo isn’t the only one who is anxious. He soon discovers that Jilly the Irish wolfhound, has a more immediate problem. Her owner is planning to sell her puppies Wolfie, Wilfred, Wilma and Willabelle.

    Together with other newly made friends, Gizmo sets about to help Jilly keep her puppies in the district. He soon realises that no problem is too big to tackle if he has a ‘can do’ attitude.

    With its eye catching illustrations and clear text, this ‘chapter book’ will appeal to emerging independent readers.  Watch out for more ‘News Hounds’ stories coming soon.

  • Squish Rabbit’s Pet

    Squish Rabbit’s Pet

    In this charming story of Squish Rabbit’s Pet from Katherine Battersby, dreaming big is celebrated with a terrific adventure undertaken by Squish, who really, really wants a pet.

    Squish knows he is a toy rabbit who loves to dream about so many things; fields full of lovely juicy carrots, matching outfits for him and his best friend Twitch, but most of all he decides he would really love to have a puppy as a pet.

    Now as you all know, sometimes, dreaming big is terrific, but you don’t always get what you dream about and truly want, so Squish had to have a very serious think about how he could have a pet puppy, but more importantly where would he find one!

    Squish finds a lost egg while he was out walking one day, deciding that he would hatch his own pet and so, he went home and read everything he could about looking after his precious egg. But then, after a little time had passed, he realised that perhaps whatever was hatching in the egg, may not be what he wanted. What was he to do!

    In this cute and cheeky tale from the beloved Squish Rabbit, children are guided into a world of making choices and all the many things that need to be considered, with the use of well selected vocabulary, making the story suitable for young and beginner readers.

    The quirky illustrations, clear and well crafted, add so much fun to this lovely homily from Squish Rabbit as he, along with some help from his friend Twitch, makes a momentous decision.

     

  • WeRateDogs: The Most Hilarious and Adorable Pups You’ve Ever Seen

    WeRateDogs: The Most Hilarious and Adorable Pups You’ve Ever Seen

    For anyone who loves dogs this is a must have as it is full of the cutest, funniest and adorable pictures of lovely ‘fur babies’ doing what they do best, being cute, adorable and dogs!

    Based on the popular social media sensation #WeRateDogs, with our beloved pets hitting a home run every time, complete with the zany captions, which been created by Matt Nelson along with a totally insane point scoring rating based loosely on 10/10 of course, it seriously elevates our dogs to greatness level, which simply underlines something they have always known, but we as mere humans have been a little slow to discover.

    If you are having one of those grey kind of days, pet lover or not, there is a simple dose of happiness to be found on each and every page , whether it be a serious groan at the absolutely awful pun, or an outright laugh when the caption more than fits the image, you will feel better for the journey.

    Designed with a ‘serious’ rating system and ‘unwavering rules’ by the end of the book, or even after a few pages, you will be left with a ‘completely abstract’ understanding of this hard and fast system, which the author of these rules and system has advised is ill-considered and downright ill-advised to question!

    Guaranteed to become a firm favourite, #WeRateDogs should be considered as a seriously ‘feel-good’ book that should be just there when you need a little dose of zany cheer in your day.