Jules Feiffer

When George can't bark like most puppies, his mother takes him to the vet who also tells George to "bark!" An exhausted doctor literally pulls out the reasons George "meows" and more with funny and surprising results. Spare, comic line drawings add to the silliness.

Jimmy seems not to meet his family's expectations; instead, he is drawn to drawing and cartoons. How Jimmy finds his own focus is realistically but imaginative and plausible portrayed in Feiffer's first children’s novel.

Absorbed in his book, a child ignores his mother's persistent calls, creating his own outrageous, imaginative adventures with the use of the word "meanwhile…" Wit and ingenuity abound in text and illustration until the boy's adventures — and the book — conclude.

Nine-year-old Julie wants a dog but instead winds up with a menagerie of different kinds of critters — with very funny and finally satisfying results. The semi-autobiographical novel reads aloud well and is sure to resonate with many families.