A Very Marley Christmas

October 1, 2008
K-Gr 4-The pup from Grogans nonfiction title "Marley: A Dog Like No Other" (HarperCollins, 2007) returns in a picture book. This slight story records the yellow Labs destructive puppy antics. The repetition of Bad dog, Marley! seems antithetical to current, positive-reinforcement-based pet-training techniques, but one can understand the frustration as the pup ruins project after project for every family member. Cowdreys illustrations do their best to showcase Marleys exuberance and joie de vivre, but only partially succeed. Better dog stories abound."Lisa Falk, Los Angeles Public Library"

Copyright 2008 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2008
Grogan continues his Marley franchise with his third children's book about the boisterous yellow lab, rearranging the chronology of the family history slightly so that there are already two children in the family when Marley arrives. During the Christmas preparations, Marley jumps in the box of ornaments, runs off with the strings of lights, knocks over the tree and then uses it for his "indoor bathroom. " He pulls down decorations, runs through a painting project in one delightfully messy illustration and finally shakes snow all over the family's new toboggan in a conclusion that falls a little flat. The story is smoothly told but not in a particularly funny or original way, and the dialogue includes a lot of unintelligible and annoying baby talk from the toddler son. The humorous illustrations of Marley are the volume's best feature, but they really portray just a string of typical incidences of Marley misbehavior rather than a meaningful story. It may be time for this overworked pup to take a rest. (Picture book. 3-7)

(COPYRIGHT (2008) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

January 1, 2009
Grogan's adult bestseller [cf2]Marley & Me[cf1] is barely recognizable in this flimsy takeoff. It's Marley's first Christmas, and the pup's out of control: knocking down the tree, breaking ornaments, etc. He regains his hero status after noticing the hoped-for snow falling on Christmas Day. The too-sweet human family's facial expressions lurch between astonishment and wonder in the sentimental illustrations.

(Copyright 2009 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)