Critters (Monet & Sully)
Critters Playing & Ignoring
Double the fun today! Doodle Day May courtesy of Alison Hertz is still going on….yesterday’s doodle prompt was critters. Since our house is crawling with them (the good kind, not the creepy kind), I picked our cat and rabbit to doodle. They play every evening together. The bunny whose name is Sully, chases the cat down the hall. The cat, Monet, will then stop, turn around and chase the rabbit. Then she’ll bat Sully on the head, sometimes hug him and then it usually ends with the cat sitting on the rabbit’s head. It all takes place in about 2 minutes time while the dog, a choc. lab watches. She wants to get involved, but she’s afraid the cat will sit on her head.
Now on to the double part of the fun, my pick for Perfect Picture Book Friday, another book about a bigger critter:
Title: Farley Follows His Nose
Author: Lynn Johnston & Beth Cruikshank
Illustrator: Lynn Johnston
Publisher: Bowen Press, 2009
Genre: Fiction
Audience Age: 2-8
Themes/Topics: Dogs, Senses
Opening Sentences: “It was a beautiful summer morning, and Farley’s bath was over at last. Farley shook himself and drew in a deepbreath. Baths always made Farley hungry, but in the breeze he smelled [and this is the way the book presents them] rosesfreshcutgrasssweatypeoplethecatnextdoor and….HOT DOGS!”
Synopsis: Farley, the dog, from that wonderful comic strip, “For Better or Worse,” follows his nose from one good smell to another all over town. Along the way he finds a little lost boy and helps to return him home by using his sense of smell.
Why I like it: When I found this at the library, I squeaked with delight. Farley is an old friend of the family. As our girls were growing up we would read the comic strip ‘For Better or Worse’ to them. When I found this on the shelf I knew I would love it – and I did. And when my now grown daughters saw the book they both squealed too. In the book Farley turns out to be an accidental hero. Fresh from a bath and without his collar he takes off when he smells hot dogs. Farley goes from one smell to the next becoming an unacclaimed hero while he’s at it. In an interesting and humorous way the story teaches about a dog’s amazing sense of smell. The illustrations are wonderful – I love the one of Farley jumping in a kiddy pool, then shaking off. When I read this to my grands they loved it. As a matter of fact, before our reading session ended, the 4 year old pulled it from the stack and wanted it re-read. Reading advice: make sure when you read you do lots of sniffing, snuffling and snorfing sound effects. (If you’re reading to children that is – otherwise you’ll just look silly.)
Activities/Resources: I wanted to note that ‘Farley’ has his own foundation in Canada. http://www.farleyfoundation.org/ assists people in need by subsidizing the cost of veterinary care for their sick/injured pets.
Teachers and Moms can also discuss animals’ very important sense of smell. There is a lesson plan here about using your sense of smell. Another set of lesson plans, and a recipe to make chocolate scented play dough. (Are you listening, Susanna?)
Availability: From the Author, Library, Barnes & Noble, Amazon. (I couldn’t determine for certain, but it may be out of print. However there were multiple copies available in new and used condition at these two sellers.)
(Susanna Leonard Hill is the originator of PPBF and you can find all the other PPB recommendations and links on her blog.)
Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the book!
Laura (Grandmamiller)
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Laura Miller (a.k.a. Grandmamiller) 