3 out of 4 stars
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The Adventures of Blizzard by Mark Cartwright is a children’s picture book about the friendship between a homeless dog and a young boy. Blizzard, a stray dog, notices a boy in the park who appears to be lonely. They start playing together and the boy’s mother agrees to take Blizzard home with them. Happy to live with a nice family, Blizzard has to adjust to the other dogs in the neighborhood.
I enjoyed the timeless premise of this cute story. Sometimes all it takes is a dog to cheer a person up. In this case, the positive feelings are mutual as Blizzard is given a loving home. The friendship theme continues as Blizzard gets to know the other dogs.
There are full-length illustrations on each page. The artwork is colorful and provides visual cues for children to easily follow along with the story. I liked that each page of text contains a simple action; this way kids would not get overwhelmed by too much happening at the same time.
I found one part of the story a little confusing. When the boy and his mother bring Blizzard home, it is apparent that they also have another dog, Dixie. I questioned the necessity of a new dog to enable the boy to laugh and smile again, since the child already owned a nice, playful dog. Also, the ending is a bit abrupt, although younger children may not mind this too much.
The only characters with actual names are the dogs. As a result, there is an impersonal feel to the boy and his mother. I was particularly surprised that the boy was not referred to by name, as he is one of the two main characters in the book. It was a little odd that all of the dogs have names, yet the human characters do not. The characters are not fleshed out well. While there is a quick description of the neighborhood dogs’ individual personalities, the only information about the young boy is his sad demeanor at the beginning of the story. Once Blizzard comes home with them, the plot makes a definite shift to Blizzard getting to know the other dogs rather than playing with the boy.
I give this book a rating of 3 out of 4 stars. It’s a sweet, uplifting story suitable for ages 2-6. Dogs are a popular subject in children’s picture books and Blizzard is certainly an appealing character. I would recommend the book to young children who enjoy a simple, fun story with a positive message.
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The Adventures of Blizzard
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