When Molly Drew Dogs by Deborah Kerbel and Lis Xu - OPTIONAL

When Molly Drew Dogs by Deborah Kerbel, illustrated by Lis Xu.  PICTURE BOOK. Owl Kids, 2019.  9781771473385

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - OPTIONAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW

When Molly gets anxious for the first day of school, a pack of wild dogs moves into her head.  She can’t concentrate, can’t sit still – the dogs are drawn instead of doing her work.  After a final frustration, she runs away.

I thought that using the dogs as a metaphor for the anxiety that Molly was feeling was a stroke of genius, but the magical realism part of the book fell flat for me – I would have rather the dogs be understood and accepted without it.

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS