Zooni Tales: Keep It Up, Plucky Pup

by Vikram Madan

Overview

Fans of Baloney and Friends and Narwhal and Jelly will love this rhyming early graphic novel series with loads of laughs and silly gaffs, from a Theodor Seuss Geisel Honoree.

Zooni the dog has lost a shoe. Come on and help with the rescue! It might be here, or over there. Why don’t we go and ask the bear? Join the fun with Zooni and the zoo crew—you’ll love them, too!

Dog Man meets Dr. Seuss in this fabulously furry young graphic novel that pairs rollicking rhyme with an irresistible pooch. Kid friendlywordplay makes phonics fun, while charming illustrations follow Zooni through colorful mishaps and dog naps. Never fear! Zooni’s pals are always near. Whether they’re lost at sea or climbing a tree, these loyal friends stick together through every adventure.

Told in three full-length stories and two mini comics, tails will be wagging for this fuzzy, four-legged star. A perfect fit for read alouds and newly independent readers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780823453573
Publisher:	Holiday House
Publication date:	10/10/2023
Series:	Zooni Tales
Pages:	96
Product dimensions:	6.83(w) x 8.78(h) x 0.41(d)
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

About the Author

Vikram Madan grew up in India, where he really wanted to be a cartoonist but ended up an engineer. After many years of working in the tech industry, he came to his senses and followed his heart into storytelling. He is the author/illustrator of Owl and Penguin, a Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor book and Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection, and A Hatful of Dragons, which received a starred review in Kirkus, was a Kirkus Best Book, and was named to the Texas Bluebonnet Master List and the NYPL Best Books List.

Editorial Reviews

"Fans of the author’s ‘Owl and Penguin’ books will welcome Zooni."—School Library Journal

"As the ever-chipper Zooni shows his friends old and new how to make the best of things, these cheerfully bouncy tales will certainly tickle emerging readers."—Booklist

"The graphic format and rhyming text will engage young readers."—Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

12/01/2023

K-Gr 2—Three stand-alone stories, with the first featuring a napping Zooni who awakes to find her shoe missing and enlists friends to help with the mystery. Kangaroos, an emu, a cockatoo, and a group of monkeys all lead the puppy to three rascally shrews. The little thieves try to hide but are quickly found, and subsequent confessions from the shrews as well as Zooni reveal that the shoe has multiple uses. In the next tale, Zooni happens upon three friends who have lost a fourth in a cave. Brave Zooni leads the way through dark tunnels in search of Cat and meets a friendly bat colony. In the final story, a sudden squall causes havoc in the bay sending Zooni and Cat far from home in their boat. As they try to get back, they pick up their friends lost at sea, but soon discover that they have brought on more rescues than the boat can carry. A kind whale shows up just in time. Clever use of short rhyming phrases coupled with action-packed but gentle stories of friendship will appeal to early readers. The comic storytelling style makes good use of panel sizes, gutters, and dialogue balloons. VERDICT Fans of the author's "Owl and Penguin" books will welcome Zooni. A solid purchase for elementary collections.—Elisabeth LeBris

School Library Journal

2023-08-26
A pooch with perseverance and pals enjoys suspenseful adventures.

This collection, made up of three funny, easy-to-read tales and two brief interludes, stars Zooni, a very anthropomorphized dog (not the canine from Madan and Nicola Slater’s Bobo & Pup-Pup series), and a variety of not-to-scale animal friends. In “Missing Shoe,” Zooni seeks missing footwear and comes across many items and characters that rhyme with shoe, including cockatoo, stew, and emu, all of which end in different letters, though the expectation of a final rhyme could certainly help beginning readers; in a surprise ending, the other shoe drops! Varied rhymes in “Rescue” subtly convey important themes: helping others, persisting even in the face of fear, and making new friends. In “Boating Day,” Zooni’s desire to help out those in need while out on the water outweighs caution and common sense as a bevy of other creatures crowd into the tiny vessel. Thanks to the flat, full-face perspective, Zooni’s head barely changes shape, so his nose and mouth are sometimes weirdly displaced. Readers will find occasional challenging words, like responding, weight, and gorgeous, and the Caveat-like font isn’t legible enough to help emerging readers. Still, the fun rhymes and sweetly expressive characters are charming.

Despite a few wrinkles, the graphic format and rhyming text will engage young readers. (Graphic fiction. 5-8)

Kirkus Reviews