What Do You Do if Your House is a Zoo? by John Kelly - ADVISABLE

What Do You Do if Your House is a Zoo? by John Kelly, illustrated by Steph Laberis. PICTURE BOOK. Tiger Tales, 2018. $17. 978168010118

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

Oscar couldn’t decide what pet to get when his parents finally said he could have one, so he put an ad in the paper asking for replies from the pets that think they would be a good fit. He gets replies from a goat, a cat, a whale and more and then they just start showing up. Things get pretty wild and Oscar has to ask them all to leave. Finally he finds one last letter from a dog that is his perfect fit. 

The illustrations in this book are bright and engaging. There are a lot of extra text elements along with the story that keep it interesting, but hard to read aloud. These include his newspaper ad and all the letters Oscar gets in response. Also of note is that the parents in this book are interracial.   

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher