The Very Kind Rich Lady and Her One Hundred Dogs

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing book
Review: If the story would have been about The Very Kind Lady and Her One Hundred Dogs it would have been better. The focus on the fact that she was a rich lady didn't add any meaning to the story (except, perhaps, that she is able to have 100 dogs and take care of them.) As a picture book, the illustrations are interesting and the dogs have funny and silly names (all 100 are listed twice.)

As a story, however, it lacks substance. The fact that the lady is described as a very kind rich lady throughout the book and not just as a very kind lady never sounds right to me.

Rating:
Summary: dissappointed
Review: My daughter loves dogs. She described the book as boring and demanded a second bedtime story. The entire book is in the title and reading the one hundred names twice did not seem to capture my child's interest.

Rating:
Summary: This is One of the Best Picture Books of the Year
Review: The title sets up the tension right away: how will Chinlun Lee ever be able to capture the personalities of 100 dogs, clearly and thoroughly enough to satisfy the perceptive picture book audience? This book brilliantly rises to the challenge. The caricatures are hilarious, especially the body language, but also the incredibly witty, charming, very real names of each dog. The parentheses (which keep count) establish the voice of the book which is intimate and endearing, as if the narrator is sharing a secret. Chinlun plays with contrast and numbers - sometimes showing a certain group of dogs, sometimes showing the whole bunch as a single, exuberant force, sometimes highlighting just one dog (as in the case of Bingo who is usually last, and Papa who is named first). This is the stuff of which classic picture books are made. Best of all, Chinlun doesn't just TELL us it's possible to love 100 dogs with care and understanding, she SHOWS us in one of the happiest books I've read in a long time. This book perfectly demonstrates boundless quality of love. All one has to do is give name to those animals (people, things) that are loved and suddenly there is room in the heart for every last one. Thank you, Chinlun!!