Carolyn Beck

I know exactly why this book was banned. This book is so funny. The waiting dog is waiting for the mailperson. That hand coming though the slot is just soooooo temping, and the doggie, can’t wait. It takes a bite. And that bite keeps going. This is a HORROR picture book and I loved every minute of it. This is the dream of the dog eating the mailperson bit by bit. The book actually has a warning on the cover from the publisher about having the guts to read this book. Well, one is going to see the guts. I loved this, but it might be a bit much for some children. This is definitely the reason it was banned. However, I love it, and there are a bunch of kids who will love it too. This book shouldn’t be banned, it should be read, just check your triggers.… (mais)

I feel like I have to give this book 5 stars, not only because I liked it, but because I know lots of people will really dislike it. I read it only because I found it on a list of books that have been challenged in Canada and I totally get why. There are lots of other books challenged for silly or frivolous-seeming reasons, books for teens that are challenged for violence and sexuality, but this book, I get it. This is a picture book which depicts the gory fantasies of a dog, in poetry and graphic illustrations. The dog imagines pulling the mailman through the mail slot and then eating him. There's an illustration of the dog with his face buried FULLY INSIDE the mailman's own face. He pops his eyeballs in his teeth, licks his brain, munches on his internal organs. "Yum" is rhymed with "ileum". The dog's happy musings are really very educational, as he describes all the parts of the body he'd like to devour.

This is a book I'd caution parents about, because for sensitive kids it could go reallllllly terribly, but some kids will absolutely love this gory book. This is for the kids who like to sing about greasy, grimy gopher guts. And me, this book was an awesome romp through the mind of a carnivore. And in its defense, there's a warning on the front! "Do you have the guts to read this book?" It's also a pun. :D… (mais)