Spacebot

When a UFO descends from an inky sky to land in a dog's backyard one night, the yellow pup believes it has found a new friend: the robot that trots out is canine-like, though its snout does feature a mysteriously glowing red ball. But the robot couldn't care less about its earthly counterpart (" 'Can we play?'/Walks away"); it's looking for the home's bevy of instantly familiar electronic appliances. "Spacebot's here!!!" exclaim the now fully animated blender, can opener, fridge, toaster, microwave, and vacuum cleaner, all wearing delighted expressions. As the only flesh-and-blood character looks on with a hangdog expression ("Pup's left out./ Starts to pout"), Spacebot supercharges the gadgets so they can fly around the sky like carefree daredevils ("Loopty-loop./ Beep-beep-boop!"). Twohy's (Stop, Go, Yes, No!) cheery, buoyant space oddity taps into fantasies of inanimate objects coming to life, while the couplet-based text offers emerging readers simple but rollicking rhymes that encourage word recognition. And even the doggy gets its zero-gravity day (or rather, night) thanks to a parting gift. Ages 4-8. (May)

K-Gr 3--What if a creature from outer space resembled one of our favorite pet animals? A distant light in the night sky, loudly beeping as it approaches Earth, brings a scary sight to a pup in his backyard doghouse in this fun and funny tale. Out from the landing UFO comes a space dog. He's called a spacebot here, but his robotic shape is also unmistakable. Pup races up the plank to greet the visitor. "You're like me!...Can we play?" Well, no. Pup isn't the only one noticing this strange intrusion. From within the house the electrical kitchen gadgets have been incited, and Spacebot leads them off to an aerial adventure. Twohy's comical drawings are both simple and richly expressive, beautifully expanding the economical rhyming text. Feeling very left out, Pup does eventually get his own special opportunity. VERDICT For general purchase, the book has many laugh-inducing pages for independent readers, listeners, and viewers. --Margaret Bush, Simmons College, Boston