A moving, wordless tale about a boy who has two dads and wants a puppy—and an abandoned dog who needs a home. In black-and-white drawings punctuated only by a red dog’s leash, we see the boy express his desire to his dads. They want him to clean his room, however—the implication is that if he can’t care for himself, he won’t be able to care for a dog.
We see the boy practice by dragging around the leash and pretending he has a dog there. After he encounters a lost pup, however, he also begins helping more around the house, and generally trying to show he’s ready for the responsibility.
When he brings his dads back to find the pup, however, it is gone! They then seek and find it at the animal shelter, where boy and pup joyously hug. The boy brings the pup home, and we see him happily playing with it but also reading up on how to care for a dog—a nice reminder to readers that having a pet isn’t just about play.
Henry Cole’s illustrations are always a delight, and this book offers a touching model of how to care for a dog but also conveys that many are in need of homes. Truly a delight.
One dad is Black; the other White. The boy is White.
Although the book does not indicate how the boy’s family was formed, I am tagging this book “Adoption/fostering,” since its storyline may particularly (though not exclusively) appeal to adoptive families.
