STAY!
Alex Latimer
Picture Corgi
Buster is the best dog in the whole world: that’s Ben’s opinion at any rate though his parents might not endorse that …

And that is why when it’s time for the family holiday Buster will be left in the care of Grampa.
Ben, like the majority of pet owners is worried about leaving his pet for others to care for so, he acts on Mum’s suggestion to write instructions for Grampa. He doesn’t write just one note though, he creates a whole host of them with detailed instructions and information on every ‘Buster’ topic you could imagine and some you probably couldn’t …

And not only that but once he reaches his holiday destination, Ben continues to send further instructions – on postcards this time, dozens of the things.
There’s one vital communication though, that fails to arrive on time because Grampa and Buster have
gone for a walk to collect a parcel …

and the result, as you might expect is disaster – from the postman’s point of view certainly.
Grampa’s too, so he decides it’s time to take matters into his own hands: a bad behaviour cure is the order of the day, or rather, many orders of some pretty exhausting days I suspect. It’s time well spent however and by the time the family returns Grampa has Buster pretty well trained and is himself ready with some notes for Ben.
And future holidays? Well that would be telling …
Love that ending!
Alex Latimer’s illustrations are chock-full of witty details that should amuse adult readers aloud as much as children. I love the way he incorporates scraps of paper torn from notepads, postcards and various other bits and pieces of mark-making paraphernalia into his artwork. And, the sight of Buster hurtling down the middle of the road after that departing car is hilarious.

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