Product Description

Oscar is short, like all dachshunds, and all the other dogs make fun of him. On Halloween he takes more ridicule than ever in his hot-dog costume, but one brave act makes him a Grade-A hero.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #162334 in Books
• Published on: 1999-09-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 32 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780439079464
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Publishers Weekly
Costumed by his mother as a hot dog with bun, Oscar the dachshund goes from hangdog to top dog in what PW's starred review called a "pun-o-rama." Ages 4-7. (Sept.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3-Oscar is a dachshund who is "...half-a-dog tall and one-and-a-half dogs long." All the other neighborhood dogs-a motley crew of meanies-make fun of him. His mother doesn't help matters any, showering him publicly with endearments that refer invariably to sausage. What Oscar wants more than anything is to be something scary for Halloween, but when he rushes home from obedience school his mother surprises him with a costume that's exactly the opposite of what he had in mind-"...a giant hot-dog bun, complete with mustard." He gives his mom a kiss, but the look on his face is pure pain. Poor Oscar! Slowed down by his silly costume, he trails behind his pack of greedy peers, who snarf up all the treats at each house before he has a chance to grab any. But Oscar is truly a good dog-when two cats disguised as a monster chase his pals into the lake, he swims to their rescue and finally earns their appreciation. Pilkey's vibrant, cartoonstyle illustrations include tons of hilarious touches-Oscar's mother has crazy human lipstick lips painted on her muzzle; his teacher has a milkbone on his desk instead of an apple (and the lesson of the day is SIT-STAY); and the two ornery felines can often be seen laughing at the canines from their unique vantage point. This may be the funniest Halloween story ever written, and it's definitely got the most lovable hero.
Vanessa Elder, School Library Journal
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Ages 4^-7. Oscar the dachshund is a dog with a problem: it's hard to win doggy respect when your mother calls you "my little Vienna Sausage." Mom's idea of a Halloween costume is a bun with mustard, but Oscar makes the most of the outfit, defeating a monstrous pair of masquerading cats to get his nickname changed from Wiener Dog to Hero Sandwich. Pilkey's wacky humor comes out in both story and pictures--a recalcitrant pupil at school writes on the chalkboard, "I will not sniff my neighbor." Set against a series of vivid, clearly painted skies, the pictures promise a world in which menace is only artificial and underdogs can become wonderdogs. Mary Harris Veeder

Customer Reviews

Absolutely hilarious!
Oscar is a young dog with a problem. Being a "wiener-dog," he looks different from all of the other dogs in obedience school, and consequently the others like to make fun of him. His mother doesn't help matters when she calls him her "little Vienna sausage." And worse, when Halloween rolls around she expresses complete lack of understanding when she buys him his ultimate nightmare of a costume. However, this short-legged dog has a big heart, and when the chips are down the other dogs get to learn just what Oscar is made of!

This book is absolutely hilarious! The story is funny and educational. The text was not challenging for my eight-year-old son, but he is on the extreme range of the recommended level. However, he did love the story, and read it through three times in the first sitting! So, we both highly recommend this book.

Please be sure to watch the cats in this dog book, they come close to stealing the show!

A Halloween Crack-up!
It doesn't matter how many children I read this to, it always cracks me up. I mean, when you read about a dachshund named Oscar, you know you're on a roll...hey, was that a pun? This story has lots of wordplay. It's a Halloween tale, or is that tail, about a well-loved dachshund kid whose mother dresses him up in a costume that gets him ridiculed by the other dog kids. His trick-or-treat adventures will have you howling with laughter and in the end everybody including poor Oscar likes his silly costume. The cartoon-like illustrations are clever and subtle so make sure you and your youngsters take time to enjoy them and please check out the classroom scene...it's a scream. This book is so much fun with its bright colors and zany text you just can't help but love it.

Witty fun for playful souls
I don't have kids and I'm well beyond the target age group for this book. I do think sausage dogs are adorable, though, and thus received this as a Halloween present.

The illustrations are cute, the story is fun, and the puns are hilarious. The sausage dog is named, of course, Oscar; scrutinizing the family mailbox reveals their last name to be Meyer. When Oscar shows up in his Halloween costume (a hot dog on a bun), the book remarks that he looked "quite frank."

A few minutes of laughing and a smile on your face for six bucks? Can't beat that!