Wow, this is a fun book about a dog that takes things a little too far, just like some party animal people. It can be enjoyed by both the readers and the listeners.

Annotation: Home alone one evening, Stanley explores what happens when he sneaks onto the couch – it was even better than he ever dreamed! Pretty soon he parties every night alone, but realizes something is missing – friends! Stanley must also keep his new lifestyle a secret from “his people”. Review: Stanley’s Party Written by Linda Bailey Illustrated by Bill Slavin Bailey’s best works are Good Times Travel Agency Adventures and the Stanley the dog series; both illustrated by fellow Canadian Slavin. Slavin won twenty-six awards, nine for Stanley’s Party, and Bailey won twenty-two as of 2008 (CANSCAIP,2007;Bailey and Slavin,2007). Stanley’s Party was the first in the series, and answers the question all dog-owners ask – what do they do when they’re alone? Stanley tests his waters first by taking a seat on the couch, having the best night ever, and doesn’t even get caught! Soon he’s blasting music, raiding the fridge, and eventually hosts a full-blown dog party! The intended audience is K-2 with complex sentence structures and some repetition. Overall Stanley’s good dog and the storey develops his character even more, at first as an explorer, then lonely, and finally a party animal! The plot is strong and quickly builds with anticipation. It’s an exciting read-aloud as the voices have potential to be funny. Children are generally intrieged by animals, dogs especially, and the way Stanley acts as a member of the family, paired with the excitement of getting caught, appeals to children while adults can appreciate the humour. The scene Stanley invites dogs to his party contains a lot of white space and the illustration goes off the page leaving the impression that there are more dogs involved than can be seen. Conversely, the dog-party is full of action. The text says every kind of dog is present, while the illustration shows them in hilarious situations, conveying a wild party! Slavin’s curved lines give the dogs a friendly appearance, conveying them as members of the family with human traits. His watercolours and ink add a cartoonish texture. I highly recommend this book for young independent readers and as a read-aloud as both children and adults will enjoy the humour.