Review by Jacqueline Thomas
Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2024
45 pages, Hardcover, $23.99 CAD, 9781665911955
Picture Book, Ages 4-8
Fiction, Humour
Stephen invited the guest into his home. The guest graciously accepted. After giving him the tour, Stephen showed his guest to his room. At first Stephen and his guest disagreed about the sleeping arrangements. But eventually they came to a comfortable compromise.
The following morning, Stephen served his guest a delicious breakfast. Stephen’s guest wasn’t hungry but he did make a polite effort to taste what he was offered. They eventually reached another compromise. It went over well.
Stephen is in for an exciting adventure when aliens arrive in his backyard one night—aliens that look eerily similar to man’s best friend. It is up to Stephen to introduce his new guest to the world around them, from the wonders of bacon to the complexities of the dog park. Stephen might even make a life long friend along the way.
Stephen and his guest are fast friends and quick to get along, but that doesn’t mean they both don’t have to sacrifice things. From Stephen giving up some of his bacon, to his guest having to wear a leash to go to the dog park, this book slips in the lesson of how to compromise well without most readers even noticing. This makes the book an even more powerful tool for teaching young kids as it can be read for pleasure in addition to being used as a social-emotional learning tool.
This book was a joy to read. It does a great job of highlighting humorous moments for both kids and adults, with enough potty jokes for the little ones and enough sarcasm to even make a grown up snicker. One would not think about the absurdity of a dog park until this author brings it up from an outsider’s perspective. Both Stephen and his guest do not speak throughout the book, but the author does an excellent job of giving them both distinct yet hilarious personalities through a third person omniscient point of view. The narrator is definitely what makes this book so funny. The use of sarcastic and observational humour is not typically used in combination in children’s literature but it was a pleasant surprise that was executed in a way that makes the book an enjoyable read for both the kids and their grown ups.
The illustrations are not overly detailed but they convey the message and intent behind the words in an excellent way. The simple use of charcoal and ink makes it feel accessible to the reader, like they could have created the characters themselves. It is easy to tell the difference between the time of day and the mood of the characters, as the colour scheme switches from greens, blues and black to warmer browns, yellows and oranges. The illustrations alone guide the plot of the story, especially in instances of confusing layouts of the words. Our extra terrestrial friends are drawn in the same way as their earthly counterparts, but by having Stephen’s guest walk on two legs and have green ears and spots, it is obvious that this is no ordinary dog. The illustrator gives the characters excellent facial expressions that transform the simple words on the page. In my opinion, the illustrations are what take this book from great to excellent.
I would recommend this for everyone with young kids in their lives. Whether as a gift, for the classroom, or even for story time at home, this lovely tale about friendship and compromise is sure to get a smile and a giggle out of anyone who is reading it.
Jacqueline is a first year psychology student at UBC. She loves books and you will often find her daydreaming about the next book she wants to write rather than doing her work. She loves to dance, go paddle boarding and hang out with her cat (and her friends).
YOUNG ADULTING 