Bark, George

When Georges mother tells her son to bark he meows. She patiently explains that "Cats go meow. Dogs go arf. Now bark George." But he quacks! Then oinks. Then moos. Becoming less patient and more exasperated Georges mom takes him to the vet who reaches deep down inside the errant pup and much to everyones surprise pulls out a cat! Then a duck a pig and finally a cow. George is cured and barks at last! On the way home his proud mother wants to show off her convincingly doglike son to everyone on the street. But when she says "Bark George " he simply says "Hello." This is the simplest offering yet from Jules Feiffer--creator of the delightful picture books Meanwhile and I Lost My Bear. Still his cartoonish drawings are intensely expressive alive and hilarious. None of it will be lost on the youngest of readers who will giggle every time George fails to bark every time the vet extracts a new animal and at the final punchline too. In a world of often overdone or underdone picture books this fine Feiffer creation is just right.