Is he pointing out that the farmer can’t see the great dog standing right in front of him? By the last page, it’s clear the farmer gets it!Ī librarian from Ohio (who works with my sister) sent me this awesome diagram – which conveys an entirely recognizable situation.

The farmer wears glasses, but his eyes can’t be seen through them. The illustrator, Chris Sheban, clearly had some fun with Bateman’s story.

Of course, the dog (who is expressive and lovable) finds creative ways to prove his value and there is a satisfying ending. They’re not like cows, or horses or chickens that pay for their keep.” The farmer doesn’t give the dog the response he wants: “Dogs just eat and don’t give anything back. “Do you need a dog?” he asks the first farmer he sees. The story opens with an “old farm dog” with an empty stomach looking for a job. Job Wanted by Teresa Bateman is one of those picture books that is made for reading aloud to a group of kids – which means I’ll be reading it again very soon. I read another book today – but it was much shorter, in fact only 32 pages with minimal text. Sunny’s bedroom includes a copy of Tiger Beat magazine and pictures of Dorothy Hamill! I’m about the same age at Jennifer Holm so the references to products and events from 1976 made this an especially fun read. While these are sobering moments, Sunny Side Up is an upbeat (even “sunny”) story of a young girl who cares about her family – and ultimately gets to visit Disney World! Interspersed with Sunny’s and Buzz’s adventures are flashbacks to the situation that led to Sunny’s summer in Florida. Luckily for Sunny, there’s Buzz, the groundskeeper’s son, who introduces her to the world of superheroes and comic books. Naturally, when Sunny hears Florida, she thinks Disney World, but her grandfather lives in a retirement community and his idea of a day out is a trip to the grocery store. Sunny Side Up takes place in 1976, when ten-year-old Sunny spends the summer with her grandfather in Florida while her parents devote time to Dale, Sunny’s older brother’s who is making increasingly risky decisions. As I read, I kept thinking of how much those Raina Telgemeier fans are going to love this book! It’s the natural next book for the readers of Smile and Victoria Jamieson’s Roller Girl.

This one, a semi-autographical story based on their childhood, is for a reader a bit older – I would recommend it to kids ages 10 and over. Earlier today, I read Sunny Side Up, the new graphic novel by the brother and sister team behind the very popular Babymouse series.

Jennifer holm sunny series