(3) K-3 The odd duck camping out uninvited in Alligator's yard says, "I'm nobody's duck," but Alligator insists on finding someone to claim his wacky visitor. As they search, Duck drags Alligator into increasingly hair-raising adventures before finally declaring, "I am YOUR duck!" Surprised, Alligator finds himself agreeing. The cartoon-style illustrations help give the characters their distinctive personalities in this funny tale told entirely in speech-balloon dialogue.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(4) K-3 Through tidy cartoon-panel illustrations and minimal text in the form of the two dogs' thought bubbles, newly adopted puppy Frankie and established dog-of-the-house Nico learn to live together and share their toys. It's all pretty one-note, but a surprising range of emotions is expressed through the spare text.

Reviewer: Miriam Steinberg-Egeth

(4) K-3 A dog's search for a treat is foiled repeatedly, leading to a fantastical dream and ultimate reward. The single-word text ("treat! treat? treeeat?") uses varied fonts to communicate tone, while panel illustrations carry the story and give each character a distinct personality. Some illustrations are difficult to follow, but the dog's hapless quest and his over-the-top reactions will tickle readers' funny bones.

Reviewer: Miriam Steinberg-Egeth

(4) K-3 Readers follow an expressive dog through cartoon-paneled pages with one-word-on-repeat speech bubbles as it looks for someone to play with after the little girl leaves for school; when the pup falls asleep, the illustrations show a dream sequence of wild ball-centric adventures. It's unsurprisingly one-note, but Sullivan conveys a remarkable amount through punctuation (ball? BALL!) and her digitally colored pencil drawings.

Reviewer: Kari Allen

(2) 4-6 In 2006 seventh-grader Cassie's brother, the rock of the family, is deployed to Iraq. Cassie starts following thirteen-year-old Iraqi girl Blue Sky's blog--for a class project on Lois Lowry's The Giver--and finds it eye-opening to see the war from her perspective. The complexity of war is a challenge in a book for middle-schoolers, but Sullivan gets it right.

Reviewer: Robin L. Smith | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2012