An exuberant jacket showing an identically marked dog and puppy introduces the canine protagonists of this warm story about a special father-son relationship. The son relates how he looks forward to his daddy's return from work and proceeds to describe all the things they do together: make music, bake cookies, and fix things. It's the colorful, broad-brushed paintings that wag the dog (and the story) here, and the use of dogs instead of human characters adds bounce and playfulness to the proceedings. As it happens, dogs are not even mentioned in the text; there's also no reference to a mother. It's just a "guy" thing here: "We wrestle. We play magic. We bake cookies. We stand on our heads. We get tired. But my daddy is never too sleepy to sing me a lullaby." The large images, set against colorful backgrounds, and the uncomplicated narrative convey a pleasing, childlike enthusiasm that makes the story a nice choice for small groups as well as for lap sharing. Julie Cummins Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved