Evaluation of the book:
The first page of Go, Dog. Go! might give the reader the impression that he or she is about to read a dull, instructional book that uses simple illustrations to teach simple words. In a sense, that’s exactly what this book is. However, Eastman goes about it in a way that is much more fun, poking fun at the typical instructional elements. This book has all the elements of more traditional instructional books, like simple words (colors, animals, sizes, directions) but the illustrations and words combined are not so traditional. Big dogs and little dogs don’t normally ride bicycles and push strollers; red dogs don’t normally sit on blue trees, nor do green dogs sit on yellow trees. Yet, simple words like “big,” “little,” “dog,” “red,” “blue,” “green,” and “yellow” are all usually found in instructional picture books.
The illustrations in Go, Dog. Go! are whimsical and delightful. The characters depicted- dogs of various sizes and colors - are animated and full of expression. The words taken by themselves would be senseless; the illustrations bring about meaning to words like “The green dog is up” by showing a green dog glaring at a yellow dog who has pulled him up using a pulley. These colorful, bright illustrations bring the otherwise nonsensical sentences to life… even if the resulting story is equally nonsensical!
The book seemingly contains no plot, nor even any guiding structure. The only consistency throughout the book is the four times a female dog asks a male dog, “Do you like my hat?” Each time, the female dog’s hat gets more elaborate, and each time (until the last time) the male dog says he does not like her hat. Just as the female dog’s hats get more elaborate as the book goes on, so too do the words in the book. Beginning with one or few simple words on each page, the book ends with longer exclamatory, interrogatory, and descriptive sentences. Finally, all the words learned throughout the book (think: colors, directions, and sizes) come together at a giant dog party on top of a tree. Its only at this party, when the female dog is wearing an elaborate hat made up of candy canes, fishing rods, cat toys, ribbons, a potted plant, a feather duster, and more that the male dog finally likes her hat. He likes her party hat just as the reader likes the dog party; an eccentric combination of random things makes for a thoroughly delightful hat or book!
Response:
Go, Dog. Go! is an excellent parody of more formal and traditional Dick and Jane books. By taking the traditional elements of the instructional books and mixing them together in goofy, nonsensical ways, this book ends up sticking with the reader much longer than the dull Dick and Jane stories. Developing readers want to see what happens on the next page; more challenging words are no problem when the story is so silly. The book’s language is rhythmic and the story a ton of fun; growing up, I didn’t realize how much actual information and instruction was hidden in those goofy pages!
Conclusion:
With its colorful illustrations, goofy sentences, rhythmic language, and instructional parody, Go, Dog. Go! is an important book for developing readers to feel confident in their reading abilities, and, most importantly, to have fun while doing it. Written close to 60 years ago, Go, Dog. Go! has an appeal to young readers (and a sense of nostalgia to older readers!) that has withstood - and will continue to withstand - the test of time.
APA Style Reference:
Eastman, P. D. (1961). Go, dog. Go! New York, NY: Random House.
No comments:
Post a Comment