Review by Booklist Review
Trog may be a caveboy, but modern young readers will still be very familiar with his plight: all the toys in the world can't make up for the fact that what Trog wants more than anything is a puppy. Then one day, he finds one! Of course, the pastel-pencil illustrations belie this claim the puppy is not a puppy at all, but a toothy, crocodile-esque creature that eats everything in sight, from its dinner bowl to the sofa (which is made out of rock, in true caveman fashion). Trog is ecstatic with his new friend despite all of this, and humorous, easy-to-follow panels, laid out graphic-novel-style, document his efforts as he attempts to train, care for, and generally cheer up his increasingly miserable puppy. Eventually, the would-be pet finds its way back to its own home, and even Trog has to admit that's for the best. Forlorn, he goes back to his old toys. But don't despair is that a kitty behind that boulder?--Reagan, Maggie Copyright 2016 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
With exuberantly old-school cartooning and a wealth of sight and sound gags, Graves (Second Banana) takes readers back to a paleontologically inaccurate but very funny past to meet Trog, a cave boy who decides that a stray baby dinosaur is the puppy he's yearned for. "Puppy" has a toothy underbite, Groucho eyebrows, and pink stripes. Trog adores him, and while the boy may have a limited vocabulary (two words is the most he can muster), he's relentlessly upbeat about pet ownership and tireless in his efforts to make his new pet feel at home in the family cave-even when Puppy eats everything in sight and promptly poops. So why does Puppy cry all time (Graves writes "Boo hoooohoooo" in wonderfully plaintive pencil scrawls) and refuse to be consoled? Readers will probably guess long before Trog does that Puppy misses his Mommy, but they'll still get a kick out of seeing how the homesick dinosaur and his indefatigable, putative owner try to control their own and each other's destinies. Ages 4-8. Agent: Liza Pulitzer Voges, Eden Street Literary. (Apr.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Kirkus Book Review
For boys, at least, some things haven't changed since the Stone Age. Caveboy Trog has the best toysa stick, a rock, a patch of mudbut they're all instant (pre-) history when he comes upon a crocodilian "PUPPY!" and drags it home by its red-and-green-striped tail. "GOOD PUPPY!" he shouts, even when the new arrival chows down on the (stone) sofa and bed, eats the (stone) dinnerware as well as everyone's dinner, and makes "a boo boo" on the floor (" BAD POOPY!" chorus his less-than-enthusiastic parents). The puppy, however, does not share Trog's joy in its new home and mopes (when it's not eating). Despite Trog's best efforts to distract his buddy, the puppy cries. Why? Trog finally gets a clue when a humongous version of the puppy arrives to carry its unhappy offspring back to the swamp. No more tears! Has Trog learned a lesson? Not hardly, as he's last seen racing home with a grip on the tail of an annoyed, elephant-sized (wait for it) "KITTY!" Graves presents the tale in big, sequential panels of simply drawn cartoons, with dialogue in balloons and sound effects as outsized as Trog's not-exactly-domesticated companions. Trog is depicted with white skin, an impressive mop of blond hair, and a one-armed fur onesie. Not so different from having a "puppy" of the canine sort. Except for the stripes. And the impressive teeth. (Picture book. 6-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
