From the creator of Blue's Clues...
A mysterious thief is stealing from the Lee family household and bakery and it’s up to little puppy Tako to catch the culprit. Tako succeeds in exposing Allie, a feisty cat, but when she gets thrown out of the house Tako begins to have second thoughts about the consequences of his actions. Tako may be the only one who can uncover the truth, but to do so he will have to fight the vicious river rats and learn there may be more to the mischievous cat than what meets the eye.
Todd Kessler is the cocreator of the highly successful children’s television series Blue’s Clues. His artistic and innovative creations have garnered him the Peabody Award, seven Emmy nominations, two Television Critics Association awards, five Parent’s Choice awards, first place in the children’s division of the Toronto International Film Festival, and a New York Film Festival Cine Golden Eagle. He lives in Los Angeles.
Jennifer Gray Olson is an illustrator who enjoys creating funny and offbeat characters. She is the author and illustrator of Ninja Bunny. She lives in Corona, California.
"K-Gr 2—Tako is a good dog who loves adventure and his family, so when a thief starts stealing various items around the house, Tako takes it upon himself to find the culprit. The dog quickly tracks down the suspect, a homeless alley cat, and quickly chases her away. Reluctantly, Tako sees the world through the eyes of the thief, learning to be compassionate for the less fortunate feline. The format is rather interesting; it combines the simple word choice of an advanced easy reader with the quantity of illustrations of a picture book and the length and arching narrative of a junior chapter book. That may limit the potential audience, since this offering's length makes it difficult to use for storytime and it's too visual for a read-aloud. But it will certainly serve as a great bridge between easy readers and beginning chapter books and perhaps as a way for reluctant readers to start using easy readers. Olson's illustrations are soft and childlike, which adds to the empathetic tone of the piece. VERDICT A strong addition for most collections."—Peter Blenski, Greenfield Public Library, WI
