The Stray Dog

In this delightful picture-book, based upon a story told him by a friend (Reiko Sassa, credited on the cover and title page), Marc Simont unfolds a simple but heartwarming tale of a family, their picnic in the park, and the stray dog who wins their hearts. Naming this new canine friend Willy, the children of the family play with him all day, and beg to be allowed to bring him home. Their parents, thinking he might belong to someone (or perhaps that it is too great a responsibility?) demur, and family and dog part. Willy remains in each family member's mind, however, and when they return to the park the next Saturday, they look for him again...

I can easily see why this title won Simont a Caldecott Honor in 2002 - he was also so honored show more for Ruth Krauss's The Happy Day, and won the Caldecott Medal outright for his work on Janice May Udry's A Tree Is Nice - as the illustrations are simply charming! Willy's depiction, in particular, is very effective, capturing his canine moods, from elation to depression, perfectly! The story is likewise very winsome, with a happy ending that will bring a smile to the face of young dog-lovers. It is to them I would recommend The Stray Dog, and to fans of the artist. show less

A lovely story about a free running dog who seems to belong to nobody until that day a family has a picnic in the countryside. The love for animals is really shown in this story but what is far more fascinating are the pictures which really reflect the warmness and affection the whole family has for the dog.Nevertheless, many of the pages are still mainly white and only the people or the dog is shown - except of one page in the middle of the book which does not really tell the story but show the mood. This is when the family drives home without the dog, the red, pink and blue colors are used to create a dramatic atmosphere and show the sadness of the children. Only at the end of the book, we find a few more illustrations which cover the show more whole page in a very colorful way to depict the children’s happiness about their dog. show less

In this story, the illustrations act as a comprehension tool. I think this book would be beneficial for many children. The text follows the life of a stray dog and his interactions with a family. I enjoyed this text because the moral of the story is powerful. The book is not just about the bond between animals and humans. The story emphasizes the need to belong. When the dog finds a home, there is a sense of peace.

When a little dog appears at a family picnic, the girl and boy [lay with him all afternoon, and they name him Willy. At day's end they say good-bye. But the dog has won their hearts and stays on their minds. The following Saturday the family returns to the picnic grounds to look for Willy, but they are not alone—the dogcatcher is looking for him too.

A stray dog wanders in on a family's picnic. Mom thinks he looks hungry.. The kids feed, name, and play with the dog until it is time to leave. The son wants to take him home but dad refuses, saying Willy belongs to someone. His daughter is convinced. Maybe Willy doesn't belong to anybody.

All week, each member of the family becomes preoccupied with thoughts of Willy. The next Saturday, show more they return to the park and try to find Willy. The dog runs past the family while running from the dog warden. The dog warden gets Willy into his net, but the kids claim Willy as theirs. The dog warden doesn't believe the kids.

"He has no collar. He has no leash. This dog is a stray. He doesn't belong to anybody."

The quick thinking kids prove the dogwarden wrong. The small boy takes off his belt proclaiming
"Here's his collar."

The boy's sister removes the ribbon from her hair saying
"Here's his leash."

With Willy properly collared and leashed, the family takes Willy home.
I like the story because it mildly brings up the leash requirement that is now law almost everywhere. Mostly, I love this book for the illustrations, also drawn by the author, Marc Simont.

Mr. Simont's drawings can tell the story without the text. His attention to detail is fantastic. I love details. When the boy removes his belt, his shorts pop down and he grabs them. As the kids play with their new pet, he is still holding up his pants. Even with both hands holding tightly, the shorts sag a little.

The neighborhood dogs are drawn with breed-specific features, along with their distinguishing owners. If it is true that an owner and their pet eventually look alike, Mr. Simont's illustrations are spot on. Kids will enjoy Willy's story and will heartedly cheer for him to out run the dog warden, who is in his full dog warden outfit.The attention does not stop with those examples. Each spread has little details that make the illustrations some of the best I have seen since I began reviewing picture books.

The Stray Dog is a Caldecott Honor Book. If you are a collector of wonderfully illustrated picture books, The Stray Dog is a must have.

Originally reviewed at Kid Lit Reviews:
http://kid-lit-reviews.com/2012/08/10/the-stray-dog-from-a-true-story-by-reiko-s... show less

I enjoyed the book The Stray Dog. This book had excellent illustrations throughout where you could tell the families mood, and attitudes throughout the story. The book gives young readers a sense that everyone belongs somewhere, no matter if a dog has a collar or is a stray, they belong somewhere. You can see the dogs sad emotions when alone grow into excited expressions when with the family.

I loved this book. I thought that the author's main message of opening up your arms to unwanted people, or in this case, animals, was one that students could apply to their lives. The first reason I loved this story was the illustrations. I think that students would find the main dog, Willy, adorable and would rally for the family to keep Willy. The illustrator also relied on the illustrations to tell the story with no words as he showed the dog catcher and the family both racing to get to Willy. Another reason I enjoyed this book was the author's character development. The author did a great job at developing the little boy and girl as they fight to get their parents to fall in love with Willy, just like they did. You can see the show more parents' change of mind when the dog catcher finally catches up to Willy and the parents convince the dogcatcher that Willy is theirs and use their belt and hair ribbon as a dog collar and leash. The author and illustrator did a great job at portraying the story of the abandoned dog through their illustrations and character development. show less

I think this is a book I could read to 2nd and third graders, but on their own it might be a challenge. I enjoyed reading this book because sometimes we forget that we all need a friend sometimes and I think the puppy in this story was a friend to the children. I would 100% recommend this book as a story of hope and a story of family and that new additions to the family are a positive thing.