Hardcover
ISBN: 9781416912477
Grade level: Pre-S-K

"Ivan the terrier's face fills up the front cover, but, inside, the story of the Three Billy Goats Gruff is being told by an unseen narrator. The art shows three goats in green fields, but then Ivan appears in the frame. The reader interrupts the text: Hey, where did that dog come from? Is that Ivan? . . . Ivan! . . . You're ruining the story! So the reader starts a different story, The Three Bears, and into the two-page spread jumps Ivan. Catalanotto’s artwork mixes the soft-edged fairy-tale world with a heady realism in the form of the overactive canine, who winds up eating the gingerbread boy. In the end, the narrator gives up fairy tales and starts a story about a dog named Ivan. We see only Ivan's hind end, though, as he has moved out of view to catch a nap. It can be delightful when worlds collide.Cooper, Ilene. Booklist Review