Nose to nose

In this witty canine romp, a new dog named Toby "introduces" himself to the neighborhood by lifting a leg against a brick wall, a light pole, and a mailbox ("He introduced himself a lot, actually"). In a loose, sketchbook style, Heder (Sal Boat) lovingly captures the established neighborhood dogs that Toby longs to befriend--a basset hound, a bulldog, and more. Written in graffiti-style text, readers can see the messages the dogs leave for each other on walls and sidewalks. ("My Tummy feels Bad --Merlin" is accompanied by "Merlin, eat grass!") After checking out "the local postings," still-excluded Toby finds a tennis ball: "It smelled like puddles and raccoons and fit in nicely with his collection." But the ball belongs to the basset hound, Pancake, and the whole neighborhood soon gets involved. Suspense builds at length as Toby leaves an apologetic message whose meaning is altered by the rain, deepening confusion until his instincts save the day. Heder's charming canine portraits, especially of doggy actions, make this emotive new-arrival story a pup lover's treat. Human characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Ages 4--8. Agent: Stephen Barr, Writers House. (Sept.)

A new dog in town has trouble making friends. The pooch introduces himself with a message sprayed in urine on a brick wall: "Hello I am Toby." Unfortunately, other olfactory messages--translated into signage readable by humans in watercolor, pencil, and ink illustrations reminiscent of Shirley Hughes' work in their luminosity and brushwork--drown out the greeting. Worse yet, a further friendly smellogram on the sidewalk is so garbled by rain, garbage collectors, and the feet of passersby that Toby's four-footed neighbors mistake him for a mean dog. What's a lonely mutt to do? Dog lovers will delight in the canine rushes of various Fidos cavorting energetically across the urban scenes and endpapers (human figures remain hazy and peripheral, though seemingly racially diverse) and yelp with pleasure at Toby's distinctly doggy solution to his dilemma. Confronted in the park by a tense, hostile pack, he approaches slowly and then suddenly drops his front end in classic "DO YOU WANT TO…CHASE ME?" posture. The canines respond with a howling chorus of "YES!" and the ice is instantly broken in a wild, gleeful rumpus. Heder may take a bit of artistic license in depicting over a dozen dogs unleashed in an apparently unfenced urban park setting, but young readers who've found themselves in a situation like Toby's will take comfort in the cathartic close. The messages that the dogs convey in urine are hilariously apt: "Suki's stick," "Don't trust the squirrels," and "Anyone for a howl?" A real tail wagger.(Picture book. 5-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.