Hi, Fly Guy!

July 18, 2005
A fly went flying," opens Arnold's (Parts
) brief, playful tale, structured in three chapters. At the same time, "A boy went walking." The winged fellow is looking for food and the boy is searching for a critter for the upcoming Amazing Pet Show. The two equally and comically bug-eyed beings meet when the fly collides with the human hero's nose ("boink
") and the lad captures it in a glass jar. After the infuriated insect stomps his foot and says, "Buzz!
" the amazed boy replies, "You know my name! You are the smartest pet in the world!" Buzz shows his new pet, which he names Fly Guy, to his parents; his father announces that flies are pests and grabs a swatter—until the sly fly lands on Buzz's nose and calls him by name. In one of the book's funniest pictures, Fly Guy is dwarfed by the hot dog Buzz places in his jar, most of which he happily consumes. Though the pet show judges tell Buzz that flies don't qualify as pets, Fly Guy rises to the occasion and wows the judges with various feats, clinching the prize for smartest pet. Suitably wacky cartoon art accompanies the text, which is simple enough for beginning readers ready to soar to a chapter-book format. Ages 4-8.

February 1, 2006
K-Gr 2 -A boy goes out searching for a smart animal to take to -The Amazing Pet Show - and bumps into a fly that is intelligent enough to say the child -s name, -Buzz. - Although his parents and the judges feel at first that a fly is only a pest, not a pet, the insect puts on a performance that astounds them all and wins an award. The cartoon illustrations showing characters with exaggerated wide eyes are delightful, but the text is somewhat weak and disjointed." -Anne Knickerbocker, formerly at Cedar Brook Elementary School, Houston, TX"

Copyright 2006 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2006
Buzz finds and befriends a fly, which he names Fly Guy. Fly Guy impresses Buzz by buzzing, which Buzz interprets as Fly Guy's saying his name. Based on Fly Guy's perceived prowess, Buzz enters him in a pet contest, and he wins. A silly premise with matching exaggerated illustrations and a hologram cover departs nicely from other formulaic easy readers.

(Copyright 2006 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)