(2) PS There's plenty to do when a girl and her mother move to a new town, but after the novelty wears off, without a friend things get boring fast. Enter Scribbly, an imaginary stick dog drawn by our self-sufficient protagonist. "Scribbly was the bestest friend anyone could ask for." When the girl is invited to a birthday party where she doesn't know anyone, her mother tells her to leave Scribbly at home, but she "really really needed him." Scribbly not only attends but is the life of the party, nibbling cake, doing backflips, and befriending everyone. In short, he makes "being the new kid much easier." Pencil and watercolor illustrations combine the kid-art representation of Scribbly with the more realistic goings-on. Astute readers may pick up on the mother's facial expressions and develop a more nuanced interpretation of the girl's reliance on the imaginary friend to assuage anxiety and doubt. When she adopts a real dog from a shelter, the girl bridges the gap between the imaginary and real worlds and boosts her self-confidence. Scribbly is still around, but she's no longer dependent on him. Dogs, whether real or imagined, are a girl's best friend in this book that may soothe social anxieties over being the new kid.

Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2021

(3) K-3 The titular half-shark, half-dog pet (Shark Dog!) is back and making his child's ordinary school nature trip way more interesting. While his curiosity may get the better of him, Shark Dog's got a nose for helping: he rescues a distressed bear cub and shows lost class members their way home. Adamson's pencil and watercolor illustrations help ground this quirky animal hero.

Reviewer: Kari Allen

(4) PS Muriel grows, but her (dinosaurish) friend Herb doesn't; sad and envious, Herb tries myriad techniques to make himself taller. Eventually Herb does grow, and even though Muriel has grown again, too, she keeps quiet and celebrates her friend. While it's unclear what Herb is (a pet? imaginary friend?), this is a sweet story with subtle lessons about empathy and selflessness and bright childlike illustrations.

Reviewer: Miriam Steinberg-Egeth

(3) K-3 A half shark–half dog creature follows an explorer and his child (the narrator) home; everything is great until the pet begins to feel homesick. They travel back to his native land, but Shark Dog decides to stay with his new family. The watercolor illustrations' humorous, cartoony style (especially in depicting googly-eyed Shark Dog) lighten this story of finding one's place in the world.

Reviewer: Lolly Robinson

(4) K-3 Dog Douglas keeps mistaking one thing for another (e.g., the "squirrel" he's chasing is a tumbling leaf), so his young owner finally brings him to the optician. Adamson honors his terrific premise with abundant visual gags (the doctor's eye chart is made up of pictures of dog-pleasing objects instead of letters), but the story fizzles once Douglas gets his specs.

Reviewer: Nell Beram