[.ca] Bow Wow Meow Meow: It's Rhyming Cats and Dogs (ISBN 0152163956)

From Amazon.com:
Douglas Florian (Insectlopedia, The Mammalabilia) is at it again. The 21 poems and paintings in his new collection, Bow Wow Meow Meow, will tickle young dog and cat lovers—and just about everyone else, too. Florian's painting of a poodle, essentially a riot of curls and a pink hair bow, accompanies a four-line concrete poem cleverly typeset in swirls on the opposite page: Poodles have oodles and oodles of curls, Which makes poodle boys look like poodle girls. The curls may have whirls, while the whirls may have swirls. Poodles have oodles and oodles of curls. Florian has fun with bulldogs, pointers, Siamese, and Manx, but he doesn't limit himself to domestic breeds. Wolves, lions, and ocelot ("Why ocelots have lots of spots puzzles ocelot") are also featured. All the paintings have wonderful juvenile appeal—-many of them are flat-out funny—-and the leopard painting, in particular, is worth the price of the book. In fact, you may need two copies: one for framing and one to savor with the kids. (All ages) --Jennifer Lindsay

Twenty-one brief, humorous poems:
Poet and painter Douglas Florian barks up the right tree in the young people poetry month release, "Bow Wow Meow Meow: It's Rhyming Cats and Dogs." Twenty-one brief, humorous poems about a kennel of dog and cat varieties playfully prowl its pages, accompanied by childlike watercolor portraits of each species being analyzed in verse. (Another quirky pleasure comes from the fact that Florian's loose, playful watercolors were painted on primed brown paper bags with bits of collage.) Setting the stage for the book's first half is "Dog Log" with its deadpan "to do" list of the average dog: "Rolled out of bed./ Scratched my head./ Brought the mail./ Wagged my tail.../ Chewed a shoe --/ Table, too." The next ten spreads all focus on a different doggie from the bulldog to wolf. Typical is "The Chihuahua" which manages to hilariously evoke the sound of the little beast: "Chihuahua seems a sorry sight:/ So small in stature, weight, and height./ But it can bark a brouhaha: / Chi-hua! hua! hua! hua! hua! hua! hua!" Segregating the cats from the dogs, the second half is devoted to the felines, starting with the lilting "Cat Chat" introduction, and ends with "The Black Panther": "Black on black / With big eyes green --- / At night the panther's sight is keen,/ A stalking shadow, sly and sleek,/ That every night plays hide-and-seek." As a poetry collection, this is the best-conceived, least-pretentious and most-fun work in years. The idea is simplicity at its best, perfectly conceived and cleverly executed with a just-right balance of smarts and playfulness. The witty, insightful nature of the poems is sure to delight all ages, particularly fans of ee cummings, Ogden Nash and Bennett Cerf. Even concrete poetry admirers will pleasantly note the subtly original ways in which simple type layouts are occasionally used to enhance the rhythms and rhymes, such as the lines of "The Poodles" which are each set in a tight swirl, mimicking their subject's "oodles and oodles or curls." Doggone good. To borrow a pun from Florian, it would "puzzle ocelot" if this didn't end up an award-winner by year's end.

Fabulous Florian:
This clever collection of 21 dog and cat ditties by children's poet Douglas Florian is one of his best yet - how does he do it?! To be as talented an author as an illustrator is a double blessing for readers of this hilarious new collection. From the subtitle " It's rhyming cats and dogs", to the shape poetry detail of the dalmatian and poodle poems, this consistently funny and original look at cats and dogs is as appealing to this adult reader as it is to younger listeners. A must-have for parent and child reading together and laughing times, even if you're not a pet owner!

Bow Wow Meow Meow:
As always, Mr. Florian writes and illustrates poetry on a young child's level. His poetry is short and to the point, and his illustrations are extremely creative. "The Poodles" and "The Dalmatian" is a great example of utilizing the features of the animal in the poem format. Mr. Florian gets young children excited about poetry and shows them that poetry can be uncomplicated and fun.

Bow Wow Meow Meow:
As always, Mr. Florian writes and illustrates poetry on a young child's level. His poetry is short and to the point, and his illustrations are extremely creative. "The Poodles" and "The Dalmatian" is a great example of utilizing the features of the animal in the poem format. Mr. Florian gets young children excited about poetry and shows them that poetry can be uncomplicated and fun.