  | How to train your dad Author: Paulsen, Gary | |
| Price: $23.08 | ||
Summary:
Follows a twelve-year-old boy, his free-thinking father, and the puppy-training pamphlet that turns their summer upside down.
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews (09/15/21)
Booklist (09/15/21)
The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books (00/09/21)
Full Text Reviews:
Booklist - 09/15/2021 In a fresh, dude-centric romp from the author of Lawn Boy (2007) and Liar, Liar (2011), near-teen Carl sets out to cure his single dad of certain embarrassing habits with help from recklessly agreeable friend Pooder Haskell and a puppy-training manual. It’s a tough challenge, as efforts to wean his unwitting and otherwise terrific father of a deep dedication to living cash-free through home gardening, dumpster diving, and yard-sale bartering are complicated by the opposition of the family pit bull Carol, who, in between gruesomely defending the henhouse from marauding skunks turns out to be a dab hand (or, OK, paw) at bending young humans to her will. Readers may sympathize with Carl, with his fixed-up, recumbent bike, mismatched shoes, and secondhand pink Juicy overalls, but following a string of hilarious set pieces, Paulsen tucks in a final sweet reconciliation with a hint of sequels on the way. A comical take on the value of “positive reinforcement” that's as perceptive as it is playful. - Copyright 2021 Booklist.
