Barnaby the Bedbug Detective

by Catherine Stier, Karen Sapp (Illustrator)

Overview

Maybe I'm not the hero type. But I can dream. Sometimes I dream I'm a rescue dog, saving a child lost in the woods. Or a guide dog, helping a person who cannot see. Or a police dog, tracking sneaky robbers. But when I wake up, I must face the truth. It's mostly big dogs who do those jobs. And I'm just Barnaby, a small mutt living in an animal shelter. Barnaby has big dreams, but he finds his true calling when he's adopted into a loving home and becomes a bedbug-sniffing dog—helping to find hidden bedbugs in hotels, on airplanes, in movie theaters, and even in people's homes!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780807509036
Publisher:	Whitman, Albert & Company
Publication date:	02/01/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	8 MB
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Catherine Stier is the author of more than 20 children's books including the Science Makes it Work picture book series and the Kirkus star-reviewed A Dog's Day chapter book series. She holds a master’s degree in reading and literacy and has served as a magazine writer, newspaper columnist, and writing instructor. Stier resides in San Antonio, Texas.

Karen Sapp is the illustrator of numerous books for kids, including Who Is Sleeping; Wide Awake Jake; Polar Bear Paddle; and Ed's Egg. She lives in England.

Editorial Reviews

K-Gr 2—Stier visits a timely subject in this informational picture book. Barnaby is an exuberant shelter dog, finally adopted by Martha, who thinks he'd make a perfect bedbug sniffer. They both attend training, and the pup proves to be an apt pupil. After graduating, they visit a hotel, cinema, college dorm, and various other places before going to a family's home. While there, Barnaby finds bedbugs, making the little girl upset. He is distraught at making her unhappy until her brother tells him that he is a hero. Anthropomorphism aside, there is plenty of useful information here, including endpapers with bedbug facts, and tips for preventing infestation, and how to find evidence of bedbugs. The friendly illustrations dispel some of the misconceptions about bedbugs (they are not attracted to dirty homes).—B. Allison Gray, Goleta Public Library, CA

School Library Journal

Barnaby is a rescue dog who is adopted and trained as a bedbug-searching detection dog in this informative story on a current, widespread woe. At the animal shelter, the appealing terrier is passed over for adoption by several families due to his rambunctious personality, but a pleasant woman named Martha selects Barnaby as her companion and potential detection dog. She sends Barnaby to a professional school for bedbug dog detectives, where he is trained, along with Martha as his handler, in how to sniff out the unwelcome pests. After graduation, they take on freelance jobs searching for bedbugs in a movie theater, a hotel and other locations. In their next job, they assist a family with three children in their home, where Barnaby finds bedbugs in the daughter's bedroom. Information about bedbugs and how they are located and removed is skillfully woven into the text, which is narrated by Barnaby. Additional facts about bedbugs are included in the endpapers and backmatter, though a depiction of the actual size of bedbugs is lacking. Cheery illustrations painted in acrylics help to create believable, engaging characters and a positive atmosphere. Overall, a reassuring introduction to a potentially scary subject, and just the thing for a family that needs "something on bedbugs." (afterword, bibliography) (Informational picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews