Walter, the Farting Dog »

William Kotzwinkle is the author of eighteen children's books, including The World is Big and I'm So Small, Tales from the Empty Notebook, The Nap Master, E.T. The Extraterrestrial and E.T. The Book of the Green Planet. His books for adults include The Bear Went Over the Mountain, The Fan Man, Fata Morgana, and Doctor Rat. He is the two-time winner of the National Magazine Award for Fiction and the World Fantasy Award. His books are published all over the world.

Glen Murray is a supervisor for educational technology in New Brunswick, Canada. He spends a lot of time in schools where he often mixes business with pleasure by reading to elementary classes. He has written radio dramas for the CBC, as well as articles on Canadian history and technology. He recently worked with the Lung Association on their Flight for Life project, raising awareness from coast to coast about air quality and the enviornment.

Audrey Colman is an artist and designer living in Berkeley, California. Her art has been featured in a variety of products from magazines, posters, and other print work to multi-media projects. This is her first children's book. She is also the author and illustrator of Francine, Francine the Beach Party Queen! Visit her art at www.goodartstudio.com.

Warning: This book may cause flatulence. Walter is a fine dog, except for one small problem: he has gas. He can't help it; it's just the way he is. Fortunately, the kids Billy and Betty love him regardless, but Father says he's got to go! Poor Walter, he's going to the dog pound tomorrow. And then, in the night, burglars strike. Walter has his chance to be a hero. Destined to become a children's classic, this story will have kids rolling on the floor with laughter. Adults are permitted to laugh too.

Publishers Weekly

Here's a companion to Taro Gomi's Everyone Poops, albeit with less educational value. Walter, a fat gray dog with an apologetic look on his face, comes home from the pound with two children. He has incurable gas, and his family decides to take him back. The night before he is to go, Walter sadly devours "the 25-pound bag of low-fart dog biscuits the vet had prescribed for him, which had made him fart more.... A gigantic gas bubble began to build inside him." Wouldn't you know, two burglars break in, and Walter's liability becomes his asset. Predictable stuff, but Kotzwinkle (Trouble in Bugland) and education writer Murray know their audience. Their simple strategy just keep saying "fart" should have children rolling in the aisles during read-aloud. Newcomer Colman likewise fixates on one visual gag, Walter with steam blasting out his backside. Unlike Babette Cole, whose Dr. Dog takes a mock-scientific approach to digestion, Colman specializes in reaction shots; in her surreal collages of photos and patterns, people hold their noses and a cat glances at the culprit. Yes, this lowbrow endeavor could be a crowd-pleaser but, like its topic, its disruptive effects will tend to linger. Ages 4-8. (Oct.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.