The Poky Little Puppy by Sebring Lowry

Genre: Fiction/Paperback
Age Range: For infants or children in preschool
Summary: The Poky Little Puppy is the story of an adventurous puppy who doesn’t like to stay within the confines of his own yard,  Each day, he and his siblings dig a hole under the fence and go for a walk in the “wide, wide world.”  His brothers scamper to the top of the hill, and see many small creatures, among them a grasshopper, a lizard, and a fuzzy caterpillar.  But the Poky Little Puppy takes his time and lingers at the bottom of the hill.  As he loiters, he uses his sense of smell, hearing, and sight to determine that their mother is serving dinner.  When the puppies get home each day, the four quick puppies are scolded for digging under the fence and put to bed without dessert, but the Poky Little Puppy comes home after they are all asleep, gobbles up the dessert, and goes to bed.  The third time, after the mother puts the quick puppies to bed, they go out and fill up the hole under the fence.  As a reward, they get their dessert after all.  This time, when the Poky Little Puppy comes home, he has to squeeze through a hole in the fence and all the dessert is gone, so he must go to bed without any.  Finally, the mother threatens that if the puppies dig out again, there will be never be any more desserts.  This cute story is told in a fast paced style with lots of short words, rhyming, and repetition that is perfect for reading aloud to small children.