Stanley's Beauty Contest
Kindergarten-Grade 2—In this fourth book about Stanley, the dog's family takes him to the park for a competition. All of the dogs are wary of these proceedings, but when a woman walks by with the prizes—three large, still-warm-from-the-oven dog biscuits—the pups all decide to participate. Stanley is sure he'll finish first in the Fastest Dog event, but a whippet is the winner. Stanley's only chance is the Most Beautiful category. When the judges walk right by him, his owners take him out of the running. He sees the last prize sitting on a table and figures he deserves at least a lick of that biscuit. The table falls, and 37 dogs descend on the treat. As they roll and rumble, they have a great time, but the pageant is in shambles. At home, Stanley's people realize that they forgot to give him his breakfast and fuss over him. The illustrations, done in acrylic on gessoed paper, are large, colorful, and lively. Stanley's many fans will love poring over this adventure.—Ieva Bates, Ann Arbor District Library, MICopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.