Product Description

Pinkerton the dog is sent to obedience school but learns his commands wrong.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #181187 in Books
• Published on: 2002-05-13
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 32 pages

From Publishers Weekly
In this series, a Great Dane consistently finds himself in humorous adventures such as flunking out of obedience school, getting disguised as a stegosaurus, behaving like a cat, and getting trapped in a hot air balloon. PW called the "action-filled, colorful pictures, as funny as the story." Ages 4-8.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Classic example of not judging a book by its cover
It's unfair to give this book a bad rating just because it may be a little mature for a childrens' picture book. I first read this story a couple of years ago (I was 27) while browsing through the library. By the time I had finished with the same surprise ending that has everyone in an uproar, I was in tears. The whole point of the story is that Pinkerton's misbehaving turns out to be serendipitous in the end. Anyone who has ever owned a large-breed dog (particularly a Great Dane) will agree that it's often very difficult and tedious trying to break them of their inherently energetic nature and train them to not be destructive and hyperactive. Those condemning this book for the way it turns out are completely missing the point. It's a twist of irony that leads to the happy ending--the bad habits that Pinkerton's owners had been trying to break him of are what keep them from being harmed by the robbery. They end up praising him for his inability to learn commands because it saves their lives. That's how great stories are written. So, all of you namby-pamby moms out there who think this is such a "terrible" book because of its "violent" content need to settle down. It's ignorant of you to dismiss this title on the grounds that it's inappropriate for childen. As parents, it's up to you to determine your child's rate of development and decide for each one when is the proper time for them to experience a story like this. If any of you have a problem reading this to your kids, then it's your own fault for not skimming it before selecting it, not the author's or publisher's. It takes all of three minutes for an adult to read this book, so I would think that you would invest that time if you suspect a story this "intense" is too advanced for your children. Great book! Excellent story for any dog lover. I bought it and I don't even have kids. I agree that it's not for all children, but that's a subjective opinion that can't be evaluated by a book review on a website.

Had this read to me as a child
Parents today. Sheesh! This book is adorable. Pinkerton, Behave! follows a harlequin great dane named Pinkerton through obediance school and onto a scary night when the house is broken into. Pinkerton, of course, saves the day.

There's no violence in this book, noone gets hurt, and the ending is hilarious. I've read it to children I've been babysitting (ages 2 and up) with no problems and fully intend to read it to my kids if/when I have them.

The people that are screaming that this book is too much: why not open your kids up to the real world a little? It'll do them some good. It's not like the family ends up murdered in their beds and the dog gets shot in the head.

worst book I've ever read to my children
If I could give a zero for a rating I would. I do not recommend this be read to any child. Pinkerton may be cute but that all dissolves into thin air when you are blindsided by a masked burglar breaking into a bedroom window, proceeds to hold a gun very close to a terrified mom's head and says "This is a stick up. Don't move, or I'll blast you and your silly hound to chicken powder." Not a bedtime story. I am stunned this topic even crossed an author's mind for a children's book and even more stunned that it made it to a publisher. No matter what wonderful message the author was trying to get across, all a young child is going to remember from that story is how a burglar broke in a window and holds a gun up to a very scared mom's head.