This light book depicts the author's labrador retriever in various situations depicting a father. Silly and definitely one that would be popular with young children as they see Dad raising his leg and barking in the park. ( )

Tellis, Annabel. If My Dad Were A Dog. Ian Butterworth, artwork. Tracy Morgan,
photography. Chicken House, 2007.

Annotation: In this tale, the reader imagines what life would be like if their father is a dog. The charming story rhymes about what might happen if this were the case. “Dad,” a delightful chocolate lab, learns to sit and stay, goes to the park, runs, plays, and even relieves himself on some beautiful yellow flowers. He eats fish sticks and spaghetti with cheese, and even runs away, only to be caught four hours later.

Recommendations: This book would be best for children ages 4-7. The book itself is on the larger side, making it more appropriate for students who would be safe with this book. Children this age would appreciate the animal theme and also find humor in the concept of imagining that their father is a dog. The text is in large, bold print, and short sentences and develops the story, but is simple enough for early readers. This book could easily be read aloud to a class as the large text and clear, bright, pictures are easy to see. The rhyming text will also be interesting to follow. Children may also wish to try this book on their own or with a parent.

Art: The pictures in the book complement the text. The creators of this book cleverly used actual photographs of a chocolate lab, as well as other dogs in the supporting cast. The photos were then adorned with vivid color drawings of collars, ties, and butterfly wings, etc. The photos are placed on backgrounds of bright and bold colors. Each picture illustrates clearly the text on a single page, or half a page. Children will find them realistic and quite humorous.