K.D. Hays

How many of you have ever imagined yourself as Dorothy or the Scarecrow or maybe even ..... the Wizard of Oz? I know I did as a kid. I even read the ENTIRE series of 12 books from the original Wizard of Oz series! Which is why when I was checking PumpUpYourBook.com to find a new book to review on Family Literacy I jumped at the chance to review Toto's Tale by KD Hays and Meg Weidman

Toto's Tale is the Wizard of Oz story told by a different perspective. It's a dog's eye view - and of course a wild sniff of a tale. The beginning of the book starts with Toto doing what a dog LOVES to do - chasing chickens, continues with Toto's 'voice' telling us about the tornado ride and the "people-who-can't-quite-reach-things" and the "lampshade lady" who met them when they landed in Oz. Toto also describes Oz and people by using his nose and describing them to us: "The creature that had worn them, the ugly thing we dropped the house on, had smelled bad, but in a really interesting way, like the corner of the barn where they shovel all the horse poop".

I found this book to be a little difficult to understand and read - but I think that was me. I love books that are very descriptive, which this one definitely is, but since Toto's descriptions throughout the book are made up of phrases like: "You killed the something something" you really have to use your imagination and "fill-in" the blanks as you go. (Remember dogs don't understand much of what people say - other than "Stay", "Sit", "Heel", and of course their own name.) I did find several scenes throughout the book to be quite different from the movie and they actually meet the Wizard about 1/2 way through the book and Toto's story continues from that point.

I think kids would get a kick out of this book and it would be a great book for a book report. There is a lot of comedy throughout the book and that is sure to draw the kids into this book.

I would rate this book as a A-, great story idea and I love that it's a mother-daughter team who wrote the book!

Other book reviews can be found on my blog at: http://familyliteracyandyou.blogspot.com… (meer)

Most have heard of THE WIZARD OF OZ; its classic story in both book and movie formats is internationally known. But..what if what we have been told is only one side of the story? What if the events described didn't quite play out the way we've been told? Time to get the story from another key character that was there through it all. Someone as close to the source of the original storyteller as they could be. Who? Why TOTO of course...and he's ready to tell all....

This was a great retelling of the story we've grown to love as seen through the eyes of Dorothy's trusted fuzzy friend. Toto is one of those literary characters that is easily recognized and yet his role in the main events was minimal, or so we've been told. The authors of this creative tale give a voice to this much loved character providing, smiles, laughs, and quite the obsession with pork chops. Just try not to smile as you read your way through this adventure...betcha can't.

Recommended reading for all ages. The whimsical story telling and adorable illustrations come together to create a book readers won't want to miss. Happy reading...indeed...… (meer)