Elise Broach's "Wet Dog"

A charming illustrated book that celebrates kids and dogs, while poking fun at adults.

If you are looking for an early read for children, and like dogs, Elise Broach’s Wet Dog (Dial Books, 2005, $15.95 hardback, $7.99 paper) is a wonderful addition to a list that might include classics like Goodnight Moon, and Where the Wild Things Are.

The book is a fun romp through the predictable consequences of a wet dog run amok in an adult human world, sped along by a fun, alliterative text like “too-hot dog in the too-hot sun”, “piled-high, sticky high pans,” and “petal-pink blooms,” followed by quirky refrains like: “pat-a-pat, pat-a-pat, pat,” and “shakey-shake, shakey-shake, shake!”

The throwback illustrations by David Catrow (why do authors and illustrators of dog books so frequently have cat or katz in their names?) are rich, colorful, cartoonish and slightly lampooning of those who are neither dog nor child.

Most solid children’s books have a moral, or some insight that helps children make sense of the world. Wet Dog is no exception: it takes a young child’s delight at the Wet Dog’s spray and guilelessness to remind the oh-so-serious adults of the humor inherent in a well meaning, meaning well, wet dog, or whatever impressed their much younger selves.

“More dog, more dog, more!”, the little girl squealed at Wet Dog, as the elastic, red-nosed adults danced and they dove and they splashed and they strode into the blue-cool, oooo-cool, water.”

The dog in “Wet Dog” reminds me, very slightly, of one of the most endearing emerging canine celebrities, Stan the Hot Dawg, who you can find here: https://www.tiktok.com/@stanthehotdawg

And for pictures of wet dogs, check out Sophie Gamand’s 2015 coffee table book by the same title.

In addition to Wet Dog, Broach is the author of The Miniature World of Martin James, and When Dinosaurs Came with Anything, and many other titles for toddlers and teens.