Oh Marc Simont, you've stolen my heart!
How this all began...
My 4 year old daughter Lily has been diagnosed (by me) to have an obsessive compulsive disorder regarding dogs. So needless to say, when we venture into the library, she makes a bee-line for the toys with the understanding that I am left to check out every dog themed picture book ever published. Let me be clear- I love my daughter but I do not love dogs. I am not a dog person. I'm a people person. People are funny and fun to draw. Dogs smell and shed excessive amounts of oily hair. So you can understand my lack of enthusiasm when searching through the stacks for yet another Rover, Bozo, Spot, Pancake whatever - dog book. But it seems my luck had changed when I came across The Stray Dog by Marc Simont. It, I think, is as close to a perfect picture book as you can get. It's a great blend of cute dogginess and amazingly observed people. Simont is great at capturing those moments that seem so often overlooked.
And how could you not love a dog digging in the trash.