Dog Dreams: I Want a Dog! by Helga Bansch

Lisa loved dogs.

BIG dogs, small dogs, short dogs, TALL dogs, shaggy-eared dogs, curly -haired dogs, any kind of dog.

"I want a DOG," she said, 21 times a day.

Lisa gets toy dogs--plush dogs, wooden dogs, tiny shiny dogs--but never a real one. Her parents are kind, but firm. "Our apartment is too small for a dog," they say. Mom and Dad point out the inconveniences of owning a dog. "A dog can't go with us to the beach," they point out. "Dogs LOVE the beach," Lisa argues.

Lisa tries kid bribery:

"I will be good as gold," she said.

"That will be lovely," said Mom, "but our apartment is still too small for a dog.

Lisa tries threats:

"I will be TRULY TERRIBLE!" she counters.

"Still too small," said Dad.

"I need a better plan," thinks Lisa.

The next day signs go up in a nearby park:

WANTED: A DOG TO BORROW.
YOUR PET NEEDS A PAL!
SEE LISA, A DOG'S BEST FRIEND.
77 OAK STREET, APT. 3.

And Lisa's plan pays off. She gets Rollo, a smart, clever, and under-exercised dachshund, to walk in the park and play ball with daily, and old Mr. Lewis gets a dog-loving friend who keeps his beloved Rollo slim and happy.

The apartment is just the right size for a dog who doesn't live there.

Author-artist Helga Bansch's new I Want a Dog!, (NorthSouth, 2009)features illustrations of irresistible dream dogs and the upbeat story of a little girl who knows how to craft a compromise to get the dog of her dreams.