After reading Maus, I was excited about reading Open Me . . . I'm a Dog but also didn't know what to expect as this topic and age range is very different from Maus. I was delightfully surprised that the illustrations had Spiegelman's characteristic style and that the writing, likewise, was engaging and thought-provoking, even for younger readers. The book is largely about what makes a dog, a dog. The dog keeps getting turned into other things but still ultimately still wants to be a dog and wants to be treated as a dog. Young kiddos, Pre-k-2 will enjoy this light-hearted story and the illustrations. It could be particularly great in the October spooky season!

I got a digital copy of this book from NetGalley, so while in couldn't include all of the cute interactive bits that it's reported to have in real life, I still found it so creative and I can just imagine children will love the trials and tribulations of this book! I mean, dog!

“She got triple temper-tantrum mad.” I love Art Spiegelman’s work, and this is yet another charming and lovable addition to his collection. This one should really appeal to the book lover and dog lover alike.

I think it would be effective in a physical format, but it was a bit hard to tell from the eGalley ARC.

I must admit, <i>Open Me… I’m a Dog!</i> was a rather odd read for me. And if I’m being truthful, I didn’t love it. I especially didn’t love it in digital format.

I learned afterward, however, that physical copies of this book include a little leash attached to the spine—how clever!—and I think that ultimately did make me re-think what I thought of the book overall.

While I may not have loved this, this is the sort of book you buy your dog-loving child and that child will most likely develop an incredible attachment to it. They might cuddle it in their laps, take it on walks and car rides and all sorts of adventures, give it belly rubs, and let it sleep in their bed. At the very least, this dog will never have an accident in your house!

At the end of the day, your dog-loving child will probably have a blast reading their dog. And for that, I have to give this book a lot of credit.

Would I buy it? Yeah, probably for any dog-loving child I know.

<i>I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.</i>

A story for young readers and parents, a story of a dog, or is it a book? Was a curse placed on this dog?

The illustrations in this book are filled with charm, and begins with the dog sharing his story of being turned into a book.

’WAIT! he says, ’Don’t put me back on the shelf! !’ll tell you about the wizard’s curse’!

’It started when I was just a pup…’ and so the story begins of him chasing a rabbit, who just happened to be driving by… and he finds himself lost in some enchanted woods, and ends up in the witch’s house. She is nice to him until he, unfortunately, begins to chew on her broom, so she turns him into a German Shepherd… the human kind, not a dog, and then he meets Magda, the magic maiden, who sings like a bird - but smells fishy. So, when Magda asked him for a kiss, he, of course, licked her face.

Magda wasn’t amused…so she turned him into a frog, but a bullfrog that was as big as a Bull! So that happened…and then she decided to give him to her Uncle, who wanted to use him for making a stew. So Magda hid, but then was found… and what a mess was made!

This is a wonderfully illustrated story for young readers that will be enjoyed by young readers as well as their parents.


Pub Date: 08 Oct 2024

Many thanks for the ARC provided by Toon Books

Open Me, I’m A Dog written by Art Speigelman is such a sweet book! I had the chance to read this book on my Kindle through NetGalley, and I greatly enjoyed it. It is the story of a dog who through different misadventures gets turned into different things, including a book.
I think that this is a great book for younger audiences, and one that their families, teachers, and fellow readers will enjoy too! It has some great humor in it, and some wonderful illustrations. Thank you to NetGalley and to the author and publisher of this book for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Cute! Could be a lot of fun for magic-loving, dog-loving kids. I can't wait to see it with the actual wagging tail!

I had no idea what to expect from this as I have only read Art Spiegelman's Maus. This was such a fun children's book about a dog...who was turned into this book! I really enjoyed the illustrations and story throughout. I think this will be an easy staple on my future child's bookshelf!

I love the author, so I thought I would check out this book. It's WAY different than anything I have read by him, but I LOVED it! This is the story of how a dog was unfortunately cursed (many times) and winds up becoming a book. There are worse things that one could be cursed to be. And this book wants to be your dog... adorable.

I received this DRC from NetGalley.

The artwork and premise are cute. Fun little story. I like that he tells you to just believe him. It's not like you can prove him wrong.

Cute story - I could totallly see a child with an imagination going along with this story and pretending their book is a dog. Creative and fun story!

What a silly story! My kids enjoyed seeing all the things that the dog turned into.
The one picture of the witch did scare my kids a bit, but the story otherwise made them giggle.

Art Spiegelman is famous for the book Maus. I was interested in seeing what he created in this picture book about a dog who is cursed to become a book. As always, his illustrations are top notch, however the story didn’t wow me. The print book may be more interactive than this e-book version I’m reviewing.

Silly and imaginative, predicting what would happen next to our dog book was lots of fun! Every time we thought we figured it out, there was another fun turn.

A very cute and imaginative book from the master of comics and comix. I hope the dog gets out of the book someday!

This is an absolutely charming and perfect picture book that's sure to be a classic. Such a sweet doggie that's been through so much trauma. What's not to love?

This is such a cute children's story about a dog who gets cursed to be a book and how it happened. This is good if you have younger kids who are just starting their reading journey. Super cute and super easy for the kudos to understand.

My first grade students like this book because it was cute and funny. They wished it was longer and were sad when it was over. They enjoyed the parts where different magical beings changed the dog into other creatures. It was funny. They liked the illustrations; they thought they were very well done. The story was funny, especially the part where the dog was chasing a bunny bigger than him. They enjoyed the topic. They didn't like that it didn't have even more flaps or parts where the book acted like a dog. They also thought it would have been nice for the dog book to turn back into a dog at the end.

So fun and enchanting! Similar to Cotter William's "Don't Push the Button!" series, this book -- or dog -- is interactive and incredibly silly, pushing the boundaries of the "normal" reading experience. This is perfect for young readers who have yet to be convinced that reading is interesting. I read a digital version, but I believe the physical copy comes with a leash, in which case I will most definitely be purchasing it for my nephews (and myself).