Ava and the Real Lucille (review)

Longing mightily for a dog, Ava, with the help of her sister, Arlie, enters a contest at a local pet store. Unfortunately, their win gets them not a dog but a bird, whom Ava initially refuses to like; soon, though, Lucille charms her, chirping a friendly greeting when she and Arlie get home from school and perching on Ava's pencil while she does her math homework. When Lucille falls ill, Ava, unable to afford a vet, follows the pet-store owner's advice, which leads to Lucille's eventual recovery and Ava's increased appreciation for her pet. Many kids will relate to Ava's craving for a canine, which is palpably evoked in Best's text, and many will also sympathize with her acute disappointment that this wish remains ungranted. However, while the refusal of Ava's apparently cash-strapped mother to seek a vet's care may be believable, it's a sufficiently problematic pet-care practice that it will dismay committed pet owners, and Ava's subsequent success with "healing" Lucille seems contrived and unlikely. Valentine's pencil and watercolor illustrations have an upbeat warmth, and the snub noses and widely spaced eyes of her human figures gives them a homey and slightly comical look that meshes comfortably with Best's straightforward text. Lucille, though tiny, is well rendered,with her turquoise body arranged in elegantly adorable curves. Despite a few flaws, this could easily be paired with Prudence Wants a Pet (BCCB 9/11) for a pet-themed storytime duo or included in a classroom unit on pets.