If You Want a Friend in Washington: Wacky, Wild & Wonderful Presidential Pets

by Erin McGill

Overview

A clever, funny, and informative look at the pets—from Calvin Coolidge's wallaby to Teddy Roosevelt's flying squirrels—that have passed through the White House gates. Perfect for fans of I Am George Washington and So You Want to Be President?

President Truman famously said, "If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog." And a dog is what many presidents got. From James Garfield to Calvin Coolidge to Richard Nixon, presidents often found a friend in Fido (in fact, Abe Lincoln's pup was actually named Fido). Others preferred cats, horses, small critters, or even big, ferocious animals like bears and alligators. With a catchy refrain ("If you want a friend in Washington . . . , "), this is a funny, educational book about the animals that have passed through the White House. Whether it's favorite dogs like Barbara Bush's Millie or the Obamas' Bo; Abraham Lincoln's cat, Dixie; Calvin Coolidge's hippo, Billy; or Andrew Jackson's foul-mouthed parrot, Poll, Erin McGill brings to life a menagerie of presidential pets in this entertaining, whimsical, and carefully researched picture book that's perfect for animal lovers and history buffs alike.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593122693
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	07/07/2020
Pages:	44
Sales rank:	1,159,706
Product dimensions:	10.20(w) x 11.20(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	920L (what's this?)
Age Range:	5 - 9 Years

About the Author

Erin McGill received a BFA in illustration at Pratt Institute, where she discovered her love of patterns, textiles, and collage. She is the recipient of the Ezra Jack Keats Memorial Fellowship, a Highlights Foundation grant, the SCBWI Portfolio Award, and the SCBWI Award for Humor. She is the author-illustrator of I DO NOT LIKE AL'S HAT, with two picture books forthcoming. This is her first nonfiction project.

Editorial Reviews

07/06/2020

Showcasing the madcap menagerie of pets that U.S. presidents have kept, this picture book employs an entertaining refrain based on a Truman quote (“If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog”), that ends here with “and is what many presidents got.” Offering whimsical, if sometimes immediately uncontextualized, facts about animal companions (“George H.W. Bush’s dog, Millie, wrote a book for the First Lady, Barbara”), the book also includes more unusual pets, such as John Quincy Adam’s bathroom-bound alligator. Childlike mixed-media art provide a fitting complement to the buoyant text. The spreads might be more enlightening if catalogued in sequential presidential order, but this book is a treat for anyone with an affinity for pets, presidents, fun facts, or all of the above. Back matter includes a note about the text and art, as well as a consolidated list of each president’s respective pets. Ages 5–9. (July)

Publishers Weekly

Great, fascinating, lighthearted fun.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review 

“The White House was often as much a menagerie as a residence. A fetching sidelight on U.S. history.” —Booklist, starred review 

“Contains fascinating facts with charming ­illustrations—perfect for conveying historical tidbits to young children.” —School Library Journal, starred review

“This book is a treat.” —Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

★ 06/01/2020

K-Gr 3—This funny and informative book about the pets of U.S. presidents begins with a famous quote attributed to President Truman: "If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog." Of all the U.S. presidents, only James K. Polk, Andrew Johnson, and Donald Trump did not have pets, while Theodore Roosevelt, Calvin Coolidge, and John F. Kennedy had some of the most unusual and largest menageries. Rather than moving from president to president and listing the pets each owned, the book organizes the pets into categories, with a cute illustration and the name of the creature and the presidential surname. A humorous spread shows all the dogs owned by the presidents, with the largest number of dogs owned by George Washington. Plenty of presidents have had dogs, cats, horses, and birds, but many also had farm animals (including goats, sheep, and chickens) and more exotic creatures (bear cubs, alligators, a wallaby, and a pygmy hippo). The final pages list all the presidents in order with the names of their pets, and end pages include vintage photographs. VERDICT Although the ending is a bit abrupt, this story contains fascinating facts with charming illustrations—perfect for conveying historical tidbits to young children.—Sally James, South Hillsborough Elem. Sch., Hillsborough, CA

School Library Journal

★ 2020-03-29
A highly entertaining catalog of presidential pets and other White House animals.

An apocryphal remark by Harry S. Truman observes, “If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog.” Why? Because, “As the president you are in charge of the WHOLE of the United States of America,” and “Citizens might not agree with your opinions, ideas, or political party.” While there have been over 100 dogs belonging to presidents and their families, an astonishing variety of other animals have been quartered at the White House. Both Calvin Coolidge’s wife, Grace, and Theodore Roosevelt’s family had quite a few. The names of members of presidential menageries are entertaining, from Boston Beans Coolidge (dog) to Misty Malarky Ying Yang Carter (cat) to Mooly Wooly Taft (cow) to Emily Spinach Roosevelt (snake). Andrew Jackson’s foulmouthed parrot makes an appearance along with the tigers given to Martin Van Buren (they were confiscated and given to a zoo). A gift of elephants to James Buchanan never arrived, but both John Quincy Adams and Herbert Hoover supposedly had alligators. The dozens of expressive, brightly colored, shaggy, scaly, toothy creatures in McGill’s charming cartoon illustrations seem to radiate good humor and cheerfulness. Backmatter names the pets belonging to every president (only James K. Polk and Donald Trump had no animals at all) and offers additional facts. Endpapers feature black-and-white photos of animals belonging to eight former commanders in chief.

Great, fascinating, lighthearted fun. (additional facts, selected sources) (Informational picture book. 3-9)

Kirkus Reviews