Go, Dog, Go! by P.D. Eastman

Eastman, P.D. Go, Dog, Go! New York: Random House Children's Books, 1961. ISBN: 978-0-394-80020-2

PLOT SUMMARY:

P.D. Eastman expertly crafts simple words for the beginner reader to create a delightful story about a community of dogs in his story Go, Dog, Go!. The fun-loving  and hard working dogs participate in daily activities of playing and working. As the reader follows their antics from page to page, the sense of a fun and pleasant community that anyone would love to join is enhanced by the illustrations of interactions between the dogs. What adventure will the next page bring? Eastman cleverly builds anticipation as the story progresses, and the final event leaves the reader with a happy and satisfied experience one feels after reading a great book.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

In Go, Dog, Go!, an Easy Reader book, Eastman expertly meets the challenge of creating a story using simple words of direction, colors, and verbs. The storyline involves a community of dogs and their day to day activities. Eastman reveals his understanding of his young audience's limited life experiences through his illustrations, as the dogs are involved in simple tasks that young children can recognize and relate to. For example, some illustrations show the dogs in a fairground. In one illustration the dogs are on a roller coaster; some are going up, and another is going down. Other illustrations show the dogs riding bikes, swimming in water, or enjoying a party.

One recurring theme, found in brief interludes among the storyline, includes two dogs, a male and a female, who occasionally meet one another. The girl dog asks, "Do you like my hat?" The boy dog responds, "I do not like your hat." Taken out of context, without the illustration, one may think this is a rude reaction to include in children's book. Yet, when looking at the illustrations of these brief meetings, it is obvious that a honest question is asked, and an honest answer is given. There exists no animosity between the two dogs, just a simple acceptance of honesty and a parting of ways. However, the third time the girl dog asks the boy dog, she begins to look slightly perturbed as she parts ways with him.

When reading this book, the reader cannot help but to stop and look at the illustrations of the many dogs on the pages. The feeling of movement, the emotions of happiness, the delight in recognizing familiar objects all make the words and the pictures blend into a wonderful classic. As the story draws to an end, anticipation builds as the reader is prompted to predict what the dogs will do next. The final event, a fun party on top of a tree, is written with exclamation points and illustrated with moving characters which enhance the excitement of the party. Even the little dog couple who have a difference of opinion on hat styles, finally agree on a style of hat. The reader is left satisfied after reading this story of dogs who are always having fun, no matter where they are or what they are doing.

REVIEWS

"The canine cartoons make an elementary text funny and coherent and still one of the best around."--School Library Journal.

CONNECTIONS

Throw a Go, Dog, Go! birthday party for your child!  The following link will take you to a .pdf page to print out activities and a party hat pattern to use for a Go, Dog, Go! party theme!

http://www.randomhouse.com/kids/activities/printables/go-dog-go/GoDogGo-PartyKit.pdf

IMAGE CREDIT

Go, Dog, Go! cover illustration. Random House Children's Publishing.  Internet on-line.  Accessed September 9, 2012 from http://www.randomhouse.com/kids/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780394800202