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Summary
Summary
Hilarious yet sweet, this charming picture book that will give readers the giggles while subtly conveying the message to love others for who they are. Pretend pirate captain Izzy is looking for a pet when an adventurous little octopus squiggles into town.
Have you ever taught an octopus to roll over? It's harder than it looks. Discover why octopuses make the best pets in this charming picture book about friendship and embracing individuality!
Izzy has always wanted a pet. So when an adventurous octopus squiggles into town, Izzy decides to keep him. After all, a real pirate captain has to have a mascot. Oscar is not very good at going for walks or playing fetch. (Although he is amazing at hide and seek). And he's definitely not like other pets...
But he is just right for Izzy.
Readers will be tickled by Izzy's attempts to teach Oscar to behave like a dog, a parrot, a pony-and gratified by Izzy's realization that in the end we love others for who they are...eight arms and all!
Author Notes
Allison Estes has written fifteen books for young readers. She teaches writing through the New York Writers Workshop, the JCC in Manhattan, the New York Public Library, and the Yoknapatawpha Arts Council in Oxford, MS.
Dan Stark practiced law for twenty-seven years before beginning his career as a writer. He lives in New Jersey and is the author of Silence of the Bunnies and Gelding Goliath .
Illustrator Tracy Dockray has illustrated numerous picture books, as well as several series by Beverly Cleary, including the Ramona books. Her most recent book is The Lost and Found Pony , which won the Moonbeam Award. Visit her online at tracydockray.com
Reviews (3)
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 2-Izzy, the pirate captain, has always wanted a pet. One day, she and her friends stumble upon a rather nontraditional pet, an octopus, whom she names Oscar. He eats too much and inks her mom, but when a man goes overboard, Oscar comes to the rescue, saving Izzy and another friend who can't swim. This exciting story is full of rich vocabulary, beautiful pencil and dye illustrations, and belly-laugh humor that young children will love. The images are colorful and eye-catching, while not overpowering. The characters' facial expressions are funny and speak volumes. The back of the book also contains a list of fun "Octofacts." Izzy & Oscar has the potential to appeal to children of all genders, while offering girl empowerment through Izzy's pirate captain narrative; she's a young and quirky, modern-day Anne Bonny. This title would make a great segue into a STEM discussion on animal camouflage and octopi traits. VERDICT A good addition to any library or classroom collection, making for a fun read aloud or independent reading selection.-Kaitlin Connors, Virginia Beach Public Library © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Izzy and her friends are in the middle of a serious pirate phrase. "Call me Izzy," she says, opening the book in Melvillean fashion. "It's only Isabel if I am in trouble. And the captain is never in trouble." Izzy's friends already have their own pirate animal mascots, and Izzy finds hers in a purple octopus named Oscar. Dockray (Sweet Baby Feet) draws Oscar with a semblance of naturalistic detail, but Estes and Stark are in it for the laughs as Izzy tries to train Oscar. "He was pretty good on the leash. Mostly," they write as Oscar all but glues himself to the door of a sushi restaurant. And, later, Oscar parlays a heroic swimming-pool rescue into a gig as "the best lifeguard ever," complete with whistle and sunglasses. Offsetting the comedy, the authors conclude with a list of 12 octopus facts, noting the animal's camouflage and regenerative abilities. It's a goofy, good-natured story of a decidedly nontraditional pet. Because, as Izzy explains, "A traditional pet does not squoosh out black ink all over everything. And your mother." Ages 4-8. Agent: Brianne Johnson, Writers House. (Apr.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Booklist Review
Izzy, in pigtails and pirate hat, is the captain of her crew, even though she doesn't have a mascot, and she's leading her friends on a treasure hunt. Is it buried jewels? Nope: where X marks the spot, Izzy finds Oscar, a goofy purple octopus, and her mascot problems are over. The first order of business is training Oscar to be a traditional pet, and though he has superior intelligence and stunning camouflage abilities, his invertebrate body and fishy diet make it a tricky process. After an incident involving Izzy's mom, Oscar's ink-squirting abilities, and an awful lot of shouting, the slippery cephalopod makes a break for it. Izzy takes a tumble in the pool as she chases after him, but just in the nick of time, a certain eight-legged friend comes to her rescue. Though the text is occasionally disjointed, most kids will be delighted by the absurd premise and Dockray's soft, colorful illustrations, which sneak in lots of visual humor, thanks to Oscar's minimal, yet unmistakable, facial expressions. A list of octo-facts closes the volume.--Hunter, Sarah Copyright 2015 Booklist