A Day, a Dog - Hardcover

Vincent, Gabrielle

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1886910510 ISBN 13: 9781886910515

Publisher: Front Street imprint of Boyds Mills Press, 1999

Synopsis

An abandoned dog's life ends in a triumph of resourcefulness in this wordless picture book.

About this title

Reviews

Grade 5 Up-This wordless picture book by the creator of the "Ernest and Celestine" books (Greenwillow) will have a limited audience. With supreme economy of line, Vincent's black-and-white sketches relay what happens to a dog after he is forced out of a car and abandoned. The artist records the events matter-of-factly: the creature attempts to follow his owners, narrowly escapes being hit on the street (while causing a major accident-the central action), pees on a parked car in the midst of the chaos, and makes his way to a nearby town. There he encounters a lonely looking boy, resulting in an open-ended conclusion. While the illustrations are engaging, most children will find the existentialism bewildering. Purchase where sophisticated picture books are appreciated.
Wendy Lukehart, Dauphin County Library, Harrisburg, PA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

The author and illustrator of the Ernest and Celestine books offers something quite different here. With no text and minimal charcoal sketches, she tells the dramatic story of an abandoned dog. From the opening, upsetting image, which shows a car from behind, an arm out the window, and a dog falling to the ground, emotions will stir. Then the dog dashes into the road, causing two cars to collide, a bitter, ironic twist to what was "just" a dog-dumping. Readers will empathize with the lost, frightened, and lonely animal as it wanders from place to place, searching. Vincent's sketches, which capture the physical language of a dog, will provoke many feelings and even more questions. That's a good thing, too, for the honest imagery demands that adults stop and talk seriously with children about how we treat each other. Kathy Broderick
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Front Street imprint of Boyds Mills Press
• Publication date: 1999
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1886910510
• ISBN 13: 9781886910515
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 72