I lived reviewing Sun Dog for my youtube channel Great Books for Kids Reviewed by Michelle Marcotte. A husky puppy enjoys the endless days of the Arctic summer with his boy. The two have much fun exploring their neighborhood in the land of the midnight sun. But, unable to sleep when nighttime is still light out, the puppy pushes open the door of the cabin and walks out into the well-lit night. All is well until he finds a polar bear approaching the cabin – and the door that the husky puppy left open.
The puppy finds the courage to scare away the polar bear, barking until the big husky sled dogs that he admires so much come and help him.
The illustration method used by artist Suzanne Del Rizzo is absolutely unusual and very effective. Her illustrations were sculpted with modeling clay and enhanced with acrylic paint so that even after being photographed for the book, they nearly jump off the page with reality, shape and color.
Deborah Kerbel and Suzanne Del Rizzo, who both live in Ontario Canada have created an excellent book for 4 to 8 year olds, although a sensitive 4 year old might need reassurance that nothing bad will happen. And kids who receive this book will benefit from learning a bit about living in the Arctic.
You can buy this book from Pajama Press or Amazon or wherever great books are sold. And you might want to recommend it to your local librarian because both the book’s content and its illustration method are wonderfully unusual.