Book Review:
I Wish My Brother Was a Dog

by Carol Diggory Shields
Illustrated by Paul Meisel
Book Review by Christopher Essex

The conflicts that can arise when a child who has been the center of his/her family's world suddenly has to share a room, a set of parents, a life, with another little person have been the subject of many children's books. I Wish My Brother Was a Dog is an often-amusing picture book that takes an unusual angle on this age-old issue.

One morning, the unnamed boy who is the narrator of this story says to his baby brother:

Andy, I'd like you a whole lot better if you were a dog.

If you were a dog, I'd buy you some dog toys with my allowance. A chewy bone and lots of bouncy balls. You could play with them all the time and never, never, never touch my toys again.

Common older sibling complaints about a toddler, such as crying, making messes, having stinky diapers, taking up too much of the parents' time, are all dealt with by pointing out the lack of these problems if the troublesome infant was instead a cheerful dog. The bold, colorful illustrations by Paul Meisel create just the perfect light tone for a story that for many child readers will have an undercurrent of real, dark emotions.

But of course, at the end, the older boy realizes that having a dog instead of a little brother wouldn't be the best thing after all. It would be peaceful, sure, but...Maybe too peaceful. The final picture shows them playing together happily.

This story, which was inspired by an overheard comment in the children's section of a library, takes on a difficult topic and handles it in an acceptable but not overwhelmingly wonderful fashion. Children who are facing this issue in their own lives aren't going to be convinced by the sugary ending. The conflict is resolved just because the narrating child says it is. No real suggestions for ways to work through this conflict are given, so a real opportunity for this book to be truly useful and educational as well as entertaining is lost. Some parents may find the whole baby-as-dog concept a bit disturbing, and while Meisel, as I have said, does a good job presenting the child's canine visions of his little brother, some parents and children with delicate sensibilities may still find this book a bit difficult to take.

In conclusion, this book is powerful in the way it evokes a common childhood conflict, but the resolution is simplistic and unrealistic. PCTO Rating: (3 of 5 stars)

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