Joe Useless

Another entertaining story from Dennis Reader, who was certainly author of the month in my batch of books. Bernard Blossom longs for a real pet like the ones his friends have. Joe, a dachshund, arrives, but alas, cannot do the things other friends' dogs can do. The pictures of Joe's attempts to do tricks are very funny - no wonder Bernard thinks his dog is useless. In the end, of course, Joe shows his own special talent as he rescues Carmen Biggins' cat. Most of Dennis Reader's stories seem to be about losers turned into winners. My only criticism is that all the heroes are boys; I'd like to see him writing about a girl for a change!