Move Over, Bo: Martha Speaks: White House Dog by Susan Meddaugh

ASK NOT WHAT YOUR DOG CAN DO FOR YOU.

ASK WHAT YOU CAN DO FOR YOUR DOG!

Don't worry; Martha the talking dog isn't thinking of throwing her collar in the ring for the 2012 presidential primaries. But if she were to enter, she's already got her pro-pooch platform planned!

But when the empathetic Martha hears that the President is looking for an official White House dog, she can't wait to nominate her friend, the homeless puppy Smudge, for the job. In fact, Martha goes straight to the 'phone and dials up the White House with her suggestion. Sadly, Smudge's application is too late for the job, but the President is impressed by Martha's "sound bite" and invites her to visit the White House. Once there, he is so taken with her common sense that he asks her to head up a cabinet-level advisory council for animal affairs. As a red-carpet visitor, Martha also gets to play with White House puppy Chessie, who is thrilled with his new loquacious mentor.

But when it's time for Martha to take the Presidential jet back to Wagsville, Chessie is one down dog: without Martha to play with, he is disconsolate and even refuses to eat his choice White House chow. The President gets right on the emergency phone and calls Martha up for advice.

For a dog of Martha's intelligence, this one is a no-brainer: Chessie needs a playmate, and Smudge needs a home. Martha proves herself the Presidential advisor of the year, and Smudge is soon on his way to bouncing around the Blue Room and running 'round and 'round the Oval Office as First Canine Companion to the Presidential Pooch.

Based on Susan Meddaugh's popular PBS series Martha Speaks, the latest beginning chapter book with Martha's paw print imprimatur, Martha Speaks: White House Dog (Chapter Book) (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2011) is a romp in the park for young Martha fans who want to try out their reading skills on an easy chapter book just for them. As always, Meddaugh's specialty is introducing vocabulary and literacy skills right out of her famous mutt's mouth, so that kids get more than mere reading practice here.

And for more Martha fun, see her Presidential preview at her own special web site, here.