Meet Woof and Quack

by Jamie Swenson, Ryan Sias (Illustrator)

Overview

Meet Woof and Quack, a fun pair of pals who defy dog and duck stereotypes. Woof absolutely does not like to fetch—not a ball, not a banana, not that lovely cake. Good thing Quack likes to fetch! The results are laugh-out-loud comical in the debut of this exuberant beginning reader series that’s perfect for fans of Elephant and Piggie and Ballet Cat. Story unfolds in speech bubbles on colorful pages brimming with easy-to-read banter, fun-to-repeat phrases, and silly sound effects—SWOOSH! WHOOSH! WOBBLE! SPLAT!       

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780544959286
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	10/10/2017
Series:	Green Light Readers
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	496,995
Product dimensions:	5.80(w) x 8.80(h) x 0.20(d)
Lexile:	290L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

JAMIE A. SWENSON  is the author of numerous picture books including If You Were a Dog, illustrated by Chris Raschka;  Boom! Boom! Boom! illustrated by David Walker; and Big Rig, illustrated by Ned Young. Jamie is also a children's librarian who loves laughing, singing, and reading together during storytime AND driving the library's bookmobile around her Wisconsin hometown. She lives with her husband, two daughters, and a menagerie of animals. Jamie's WOOF & QUACK easy reader series is based on the various friendships she's seen develop between her pets. Visit her website at www.jamieswenson.com.
 

Ryan Sias is a talented animator, illustrator and writer who has done work for Sesame Street, Nickelodeon, Jr., MTV and MAD magazine. His children's book credits include Sniff Sniff (Abrams), which he wrote and illustrated, and Are You Eating Something Red? and Are You Eating Something Green? written by Harriet Ziefert. He lives in Astoria, Visit him  at ryansias.com and on Twitter @ryansias.

Editorial Reviews

2017-07-02
Beginning readers may not know about stereotypes. They just know that Woof and Quack like to play fetch. Using fewer than 50 words and their variants, Swenson challenges species-specific behavior assumptions in this engaging, somewhat silly, and mildly surprising early reader. When Quack (a male mallard) learns that Woof (an un-gendered brown dog) does not like to fetch balls and other thrown objects, his only comment is "That is interesting"—since he loves fetching. It doesn't take long before Woof is throwing and Quack is fetching increasingly unconventional items. Similarly, in companion title Woof & Quack in Winter, Woof assumes that Quack will want to fly south for the winter. Instead Quack delights in all the snow activities while Woof is the one who longs for warmer climes. In both books Woof's and Quack's playful delight is helped by the use of common ideophonic sound effects. "NOM NOM NOM NOM NOM NOM NOM" sounds just like a duck and dog eating cake. The text is conveyed primarily through dialogue in speech bubbles that make it clear who is speaking and help new readers read expressively. The format allows for plenty of repetition as the duck and dog often confirm what the other said. Exuberant and expressive cartoon illustrations set against bright solid color backgrounds express the genuine friendship of these unlikely pals. Woof and Quack may not be quite ready to replace Elephant and Piggie, but they are just as much fun. (Early reader. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews

"Exuberant and expressive cartoon illustrations set against bright solid color backgrounds express the genuine friendship of these unlikely pals." —Kirkus —

From the Publisher