Review by Booklist Review
Zoomer looks to be a beagle, but from the front cover, which shows him pouring bubble bath into a backyard inflatable pool, it's clear he has some very human abilities. In Young's lively picture-book debut, Zoomer's dad and two brothers try to get him ready for school. But he has other plans, starting with jumping on his bed and acting like a superhero called Power Puppy. He then proceeds to blow bubbles out of a tuba, build a castle out of dog food, and create a brontosaurus out of sand. Young's illustrations are bright and detailed, with an appealing retro feel. He throws in plenty of whimsical asides (like the bird bowling happening on a limb outside the window), but it's Zoomer's imagination and resourcefulness that are the focus. When it turns out that it's Saturday not a school day at all young readers will cheer on Zoomer even more. The last picture shows Zoomer and his family enjoying a day off courtesy of a colossal slide that ends in their backyard pool.--Nolan, Abby Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Young's debut picture book features a lively puppy who insists he's "way too busy" to get ready for school, much to the frustration of his father (mom's away) and brothers. Although the text provides a routine description of ordinary family life, Young inserts fanciful visual illustrations of birds bowling in the treetops and pelicans appearing out of nowhere, making it clear that Zoomer's world is one in which just about anything can happen. Zoomer shows off his artistic talents by sculpting first an ornate dog food castle, then an enormous brontosaurus in the sandbox. Even more surreal, he sails a pirate ship on a sea created by a garden hose, transforms the sofa into an elephant, and crashes his spaceship through the roof of the house. Young's exuberant illustrations are the clear focal point-Zoomer's siblings and father are flat characters with generic dialogue ("I think that kid needs a major time-out," complains one). Even the exclamation points are overdone as Zoomer gets the last laugh, reminding his family that he doesn't have to go to school because "TODAY IS... SATURDAY!!!!" Ages 3-7. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 4-It's time for dog brothers Cooper, Hooper, and Zoomer to get ready for school, but Zoomer doesn't intend to go today. He's busy doing a variety of ridiculous things: blowing the world's largest bubble, making a giant sand brontosaurus, building a dog-food castle, and more. Dad does his best to corral Zoomer and his brothers through their morning routine, but in the end, the pup is right when he claims that he is staying home. It turns out to be Saturday. Bright, fun illustrations detailing Zoomer's ambitious undertakings are the highlight of the book. A choppy story line and a narrative that lacks transitions between one event and the next create an overall feeling of disconnect, causing this attempt at humorous exaggeration to be more confusing than funny.-Amanda Moss Struckmeyer, Middleton Public Library, WI (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
With Mom away, it's Dad's job to get their pups ready for another school day. Twins Hooper and Cooper toe the line, but Zoomer has far too much on his to-do list to even think about school. The familiar mom's-gone-so-things-get-crazy plot gets a lift from a surprise ending and the bright primary-color illustrations of Zoomer's antics. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Mom's away, but twins Hooper and Cooper diligently get ready for school anyway; Zoomer, however, energetically avoids the task despite his ineffectual dad's best efforts. This family of dogs lives in a large Victorian house, the puppies attend school and they behave in mostly human fashion. Zoomer engages in imaginative play that gradually becomes more real, moving from wearing a superhero costume to sailing a pirate ship to flying a rocket with two pelican pals. It's not quite clear where Zoomer is getting these superpowers or why, but he's having lots of fun while his tattling, better-behaved brothers proceed in orderly fashion. Though the plot is downright silly, the storytelling is flat and it's sometimes hard to distinguish among the four dogs, Zoomer has a certain zest about him. Young's busy, bright paintings in his first picture book show that he can illustrate wildly improbable animal antics in a humorous and more-or-less believable way. (Picture book. 4-7) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
