Sparky & Spike: Charles Schulz and the Wildest, Smartest Dog Ever

by Barbara Lowell (Author) Dan Andreasen (Illustrator)

Sparky & Spike: Charles Schulz and the Wildest, Smartest Dog Ever
Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

This charming book is a story about a boy nicknamed Sparky and his beloved dog, Spike. Spike is the most amazing dog ever. He inspires Sparky to draw. Someday, Sparky will be an artist. Based on the childhood of Charles Schulz, creator of the world-renowned Peanuts comic, and the dog who inspired the most beloved dog of all--Snoopy--this book will resonate with children everywhere.

Sparky & Spike includes a biographical note, as well as archival photographs of Sparky and Spike and a letter Charles Schulz wrote to the book's illustrator, Dan Andreasen, when Andreasen was a boy.

Select format:
Hardcover
$16.95

Publishers Weekly

Behind every canine character is the real dog that served as inspiration. In the case of Peanuts creator Charles Schulz (nicknamed Sparky as a boy), he based his famed Snoopy on Spike, his childhood dog. Spike is unique: he can ring the doorbell, "knows more than fifty words" (including potato, which he fetches), and can eat almost anything without getting sick. Young Sparky lives for the Sunday comics, and he sends a drawing of Spike to the comic strip Ripley's Believe It or Not!, where it is published with the description, "A hunting dog that eats pins, tacks, screws, and razor blades." Andreasen illustrates in a style distinct from, yet complementary to, Schulz's--Sparky has a round face and a cowlick, while broad backspace and use of comic-style panels hint at the young Schulz's future work. Back matter comes full circle, presenting a letter that Andreasen received from Schulz after writing to the cartoonist as a child; an author's note shows photos of Sparky and Spike. Ages 4-8. (Apr.)

Copyright 2019 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

"A fetching story, perfect for budding artists and lovers of the funnies."—Kirkus Reviews
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781944903589
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Cameron Kids
Publication date
April 23, 2019
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV002190 - Juvenile Fiction | Animals | Pets
JUV002070 - Juvenile Fiction | Animals | Dogs
JUV004020 - Juvenile Fiction | Biographical | United States
Library of Congress categories
Dogs
Drawing
Schulz, Charles M

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