Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
This crisp, tightly focused comedy by Myers (the Infamous Ratsos series) offers an adorably absorbant hero and well-timed laughs. Light-skinned Cole's Dino-Gro is a tiny blue dinosaur of the variety that expands in water. Unlike others, though, this toy seeks out liquid, starting with Cole's bedside water glass, and grows unceasingly. ("What happened to you?" asks Cole. "Wet," Dino-Gro responds, wearing a shy-pleased grin.) And indeed the house is full of wet--the dog's bowl, a flower vase, a sprinkler--and the dinosaur finds it all in a slow march toward mammoth proportions. Cole's suburban parents (Dad has a sharp goatee and a solid side-eye; Mom is pregnant and serene) remonstrate, much to Cole's distress. Fortunately, the wayward blue giant soon has a chance to redeem himself. The humor comes from contrasts between big and small--as with the petite hair dryer Cole uses in an attempt to dry Dino-Gro out. The outsize pet who saves the day is a potent fantasy, and Myers's take on it underscores the way that the unexpected can be inconvenient but also offer valuable gifts. Ages 3--7. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (June)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2--Cole is disappointed with a new toy dinosaur called Dino-Gro, because it's so little! But while he is considering the next steps, Dino-Gro jumps into a glass of water. Then the creek. The fish tank. A shower. Dino-Gro craves water, and craves growing. Eventually, Dina-Gro is too big for the house and disappears. Cole despairs of ever seeing his friend again, but in an emergency (that creeps up in the illustrations just as it creeps up on Cole) Dino-Gro arrives to save the day. Cole has pale skin, as do his parents: his father has a kind of groovy beatnik vibe and his mother is very visibly pregnant. Myers does a brilliant job of using the illustrations to tell a lot of the story. The harmonious and complementary give and take of the art and text will have readers pointing out clues and rereading for extra details. VERDICT This book feels both classic and modern at the same time. Don't miss it!--Debbie Tanner, S D Spady Montessori Elem., FL
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
How to make a tiny toy grow? Just add water! Cole's new blue dinosaur fits neatly in his hand until it climbs into a glass of water, which touches off persistent efforts to get, as it repeatedly says with its one and only word: "Wet." A dive into the fish tank ("Wet") and an encounter with the sprinkler later ("Wet!")--not to mention a fridge raid and a shower--and Dino-Gro has outgrown the house. Forced at last to move outdoors, the blue behemoth sadly wanders off…but lumbers back, huger than ever, to the rescue ("Wet!") when a mighty storm floods the neighborhood. In the lightly caricatured illustrations, Dino-Gro's doggy friendliness (not to mention size) recalls overgrown picture-book pooches like Pinkerton and Clifford, though in build and hue it actually looks like a cross between a hippo and Barney. Myers depicts Cole, his parents, and the little sister that soon comes along as racially ambiguous, with light brown skin. Viewers will dwell, amused, on the lovingly detailed chaos Dino-Gro leaves in its wake as it chugs the water out of flower vases and rummages through the fridge, and they will chuckle at the comical final scene as Cole's mom's remark that the new baby will grow prompts the helpful creature to rush up with the garden hose: "Wet?" (This book was reviewed digitally.) An absorbing--and absorbent--tale of togetherness with turns both comical and dramatic. (Picture book. 5-7) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
