Every kid has to learn the truth someday: when cuteness goes too far, it can become annoying. But in the hands of William Joyce (The Man in the Moon; The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore), over-the-top cuteness becomes a picture-book vehicle for comfort and humor, both of which reach stratospheric heights in Rocket Puppies.
"Once upon a time," begins an omniscient narrator, "the world was sometimes happy, it was sometimes sleepy, it was sometimes silly, or it was sometimes sad." When Snarly McBummerpants of the Island of Woe is in a mood, the world gets "stuck being sad." That's when the Rocket Puppies, who hail from "the outer reaches of NOT-FROM-HERE," fly in and save the day, elevating the world's general mood with their heartwarming darlingness: they are fueled by hugs, they hiccup song-filled bubbles, and they "even make everyone love sharing the last piece of pizza!" But when Snarly McBummerpants directs his Mopey Smokes (sour-faced storm clouds) to dampen the fun, the Rocket Puppies have no choice but to unleash their heaviest (read: cutest) hitter.
Rocket Puppies succeeds at having it both ways: readers will understand the joke--Of course cuteness can't solve a real problem!--but they are also unlikely to resist the allure of adorably big-eyed, tongue-wagging, rocket-winged pooches. Abounding in Joyce's trademark gauzy-shimmery art are winking allusions, including Oompa-Loompa-reminiscent moon creatures and a couple of dead ringers for Old Hollywood comedy greats Laurel and Hardy; thanks to the Rocket Puppies, these gents "stopped bullying and became florists." --Nell Beram, freelance writer and YA author