Dog + Haiku = Dogku by Andrew Clements

Noted author writes
In ancient Asian verse form
To tell lost dog tale.

It's a familiar story--a lost, adorable puppy shows up on the doorstep, and a kind-hearted woman with dog-loving children implore the dad to let the pup stay. Notable fiction writer Andrew Clements turns his hand to this old story in picture book format--with a twist. In his new book, Dogku, Clements adapts the Japanese haiku form to the story of a homeless shaggy puppy who turns up at a family's kitchen door just as the mother of the family is trying to pour her first cup of coffee:

There on the back steps
The eyes of a hungry dog.
Will she shut the door?

No, of course she can't! Not with those big brown eyes and expressive floppy ears begging for a break! Getting into gear quickly, she gives the homeless pooch a bath before the kids come down for breakfast, and by the time the kids run for the school bus, the pup has a name ("Rags? Mutt? Pooch? No, not Rover! Mooch? Yes! Mooch! Perfect!"), a meal, and hope for a home.

Fast, loud, and crazy,
Food, coats, then the front door slams.
Mooch hates the school bus.

Mooch enjoys a ride in the family pickup, a good bark-up with the neighbor's dog, a test of patience with a squirrel, and a bit of a dust-up with the lady of the house over some chewed laundry and spilled week-old trash, followed by a satisfying nap ("Could life be sweeter?") before the kids return:

The sound of children,
That's what was missing all day.
Mooch loves the school bus!

But his bliss is over when Dad calls a family meeting about Mooch, and he hears the funereal word "pound." When Dad suddenly walks out the door, Mooch sags to the floor as the sad-faced boy strokes his ears. Things are tense as Mom and the kids wait wistfully until they hear Dad's steps at the front door again.

A new doggy bed!
Food, a bowl, a squeaky toy!
Mooch has found his home.

As a successful author of fiction for school-age children, Clements knows all too well the writer's dilemma: with the million or two words in the English language to choose from, how to select the right ones? As he says (in haiku, naturally),

Vast ocean of words--
I am almost drowned again.
A haiku floats by.

In the wide garden
I am dizzy with flowers.
I choose a small vase.

Dogku, with its charming illustrations by Tim Bowers, is an effective and delightful introduction to the haiku poetic form, which specializes in catching the sudden "bright moment." This happy little book is perfect for presenting this poetic form to young readers.