In an amusing alternative to the imaginary-friend scapegoat, Danny blames his misdemeanors on his huge, obliging dog until his mother calls a halt: ``Jake can't use scissors...and Jake can't dress himself!'' Danny, not Jake, is sent to bed supperless. His mother relents, but Jake inadvertently exacts fitting revenge: Danny's sandwich disappears, and this time Jake really is the culprit. Appropriately light-hearted illustrations round out the funny side of this slight but pleasing story. (Picture book. 4-8)

Ages 3-8. With wash-and-line drawings reminiscent of James Stevenson and with the same domestic farce, British artist Jeram pokes fun at that old whining excuse, "It wasn't me." When Danny's bad, he blames it all on his beloved dog, Jake, who's as sloppy, eager, and uncool as his master and about the same size. As they dress up in Danny's parents' clothes, dig up the flowers in search of buried treasure, flood the bathroom, etc., Danny confronts his mother's increasing wrath with the cry, "It was Jake!" Finally, she gets literal (and the cartoon drawings get hilarious): Jake can't turn on faucets, dress himself in a hat and jacket, use scissors, or hold a spade. Without resorting to anthropomorphism--in fact, the fun lies in the fact that Jake is not human--Jeram shows that the boy and dog are true companions. Kids will love the pet story and the mischief. ~--Hazel Rochman

PreS-Gr 2-- Danny and his dog are inseparable companions. One day, when he's particularly bored, Danny engages in a number of activities that result in ever larger messes. Each time he is confronted by his mother, the boy invariably blames his dog with the refrain, ``It was Jake!'' When Danny is caught in his lie, an angry Mom sends him to bed supperless, but then relents with a sandwich and milk. The story concludes with Jake finally pulling a prank by taking the sandwich while Danny's back is turned. The light watercolor and pen illustrations are dwarfed on each page by the large size of the text. Because the pictures are small, it is often difficult to distinguish whether it's Danny or Jake misbehaving. The text lacks punch, and the characters are all somewhat one-dimensional and unrealistic. A better choice for dealing with dishonesty is Oppenheim's Rooter Remembers (Viking, 1990); for a canine with personality and clever antics, nothing beats Kellogg's ``Pinkerton'' (Dial). --Marge Loch-Wouters, Menasha Public Library, WI (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

A variation of Hazen's 'The Gorilla Did It' (Macmillan). Instead of accepting responsibility for his own misdeeds, Danny blames his dog, Jake. Unoriginal and slight, with whimsical watercolors. From HORN BOOK 1991, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.