Biscuit’s little girl has decided it’s time for him to learn a new trick. She brings out a colorful little ball, resembling a miniature beach ball, with which to entice him. Her goal is to teach him the game of fetch. Biscuit’s life, at this particular time, provides far too many distractions for fetch to seem in the least bit interesting. He’d prefer to continue playing with his rope toy, get that annoying itch behind his ear, or go find his bone to chew on. Finally, he grabs the ball the girl has been patiently tossing, but then kitty arrives on the scene. This is just too tempting to resist, and he gives chase, forgetting he’s supposed to be bringing the ball back to the little girl. One last try is attempted, and while Biscuit at first pays no attention, the sound of the ball hitting a mud puddle draws his ears and eyes, and he goes for it! Now that he and the ball are both dripping with mud, he finds it to be the perfect time to complete his new trick by jumping onto the little girl’s lap to return the ball to her. A true pet lover, she ignores the mud and praises his accomplishment.

Alyssa Satin Capucilli has given her readers yet another delightful tale starring the beloved golden retriever, Biscuit. Many, if not all, of the Biscuit books I have come across have been part of the I Can Read series of books for emerging word lovers. This particular volume is aimed at the level of 4-8 year-olds and is a My First I Can Read book. Basically, what this means is that the words used are familiar to children in this age category. These are the simplest additions to the series, and I was not disappointed . . . neither was my six-year-old daughter.

There are a mere 123 words included within the 24 pages, only 17 of which actually carry text. There is much repetition, however, making it that much easier for children to breeze through the pages with confidence in their reading ability. “Biscuit,” “woof, woof!” and the phrase “fetch the ball” are the most prevalent. My kids love the “woof, woof!” because when I read the book aloud to them, they play the part of Biscuit.

Not only do I feel the repetition of words is important for beginning readers, but the author’s way of using them sparingly. There are only 2 to 11 words per page of text. This makes it easy on children who still have to sound out some words that they may not recognize. With only a few to work through, they won’t get discouraged. If they had to struggle through several words on nearly every page, they would most likely lose patience and not want to continue. This shouldn’t be a problem with this book to begin with, however, as the majority of the text contains words that are already part of my daughter’s kindergarten list, and the rest are easily sounded out. “Biscuit” is the largest, but most children will recognize it by sight if the little puppy is popular with them.

What I love almost as much as the fact that my daughter gains self-assurance while reading this book are the pictures. They further the story most charmingly. The illustrations are colorful, yet realistic rather than overly-bright. They contain enough visual information to give the story more detail, but they are balanced with the text in their simplicity. They don’t contain so much to look at that they provide more distraction that supplementation. The purpose is to read of Biscuit’s distractions, not create more for the young readers or listeners. My favorite picture comes near the end when the ball slaps into the mud puddle. On the left page, we see the little girl tossing the ball into the air, telling Biscuit to fetch it, while the uninterested puppy sits next to her feet staring into the opposite direction. You can just feel the antsy puppy's mind working on what he will run off to do next. Then on the right-hand page, it’s as though you can see Biscuit’s head swivel quickly around as the ball falls into the mud finally drawing his full attention. It’s an adorable two-page spread and just an example of how the personality of this puppy shines through in the illustrations.

These books are an excellent addition to any child’s growing library and are very affordable. The cover price on this one is $3.50, but the average for most I Can Read books seems to be $3.99 when purchased new. They are a can’t-miss item, as is evidenced by the fact that half the students in my daughter’s class request help in finding Biscuit books when they come into the library each Monday. The children obviously love them, and they provide just as much entertainment for the adults who may read them aloud and share in the joy of the pictures.

Other Biscuit books by Alyssa Satin Capucilli

Bathtime for Biscuit
Biscuit Wants to Play
Biscuit Finds a Friend
Biscuit Goes to the Park

Recommended: Yes