The Dog Rules

The Dog Rules by Coco La Rue, illustrated by Kyla May, is the first book I have read authored by a parrot. A parrot on a mission to get rid of the monstrous mutt, Monty. The parrot, Coco La Rue, finds Monty to be dim-witted, dirty and smelly. She is on a mission to get him banished from the house forever. Both Coco and Monty live with the Lane family: Coach Walker, Dr. Aurora and Parker. The Coach (or the big hairy human) has six rules for Monty: don’t act like a dog, gym shorts are for wearing, not for eating, don’t touch the Coach’s meat loaf, the couch is a dog-free zone, if your name is not “Trash”, stay out of the can and Mr. Famous* is not a toy. Coco’s plan is to trick Monty into breaking all the rules so that he will be banished forever and she can live in peace. Her plan is working beautifully until, Monty, quite by accident, rescues Mr. Famous and becomes a hero.

The story lends itself to the graphic novel format with plenty of humorous asides and questionnaires. The AR level is 3.2.

* Mr. Famous is a cat, who is also a movie star. He lives next door.