Puppy Diary #1: The Great Toy Rescue; Yvette Poshoglian, illustrated by Phil Judd

Archie knew that today would be different. For starters, his mum has got his backpack ready to take for their morning walk, and that just never happens. When they turn left instead of right at the end of the road Archie knows something is definitely up. Then he finds himself outside a shop. This is the worst place for Archie as it usually means waiting outside. But this place is different, it is a place just for Archie…it is a doggy daycare centre.

Archie soon finds himself amongst friends, eating tasty treats and playing games. Things couldn’t be better until Archie goes to get his favourite toy, Foxy, out of his backpack. Foxy has vanished and it turns out that the other dogs toys have vanished too. It becomes apparent that Geoffrey, a big ginger tabby cat, is behind the disappearances and so a daring rescue mission begins.

Written in the form of a diary entry, this is an entertaining adventure read about a loveable Schnoodle called Archie. Dog lovers will delight in Archie’s adventures and will be laughing out loud at the views of the world as seen through a dog’s eyes.

This is a lovely, accessible read for young readers. The pages are not overloaded with text and the text is nicely spaced out with the use of bold or larger fonts to make certain words and phrases stand out. The text is presented in a variety of ways including paragraphs, speech bubbles, annotated illustrations, lists and top trumps style information cards. There are delightful illustrations on every page which are lighthearted and help to explain the story.

An enjoyable and perfectly pitched book for those readers that are taking their first reading steps into chapter books.

Recommended for 6+.