Book: "Hey, Boy"

This is a childrens book that I found at our local library that is written by Benjamin Strouse and illustrated by Jennifer Phelan. It’s not a long book, as is the case with most children’s books, so I’ll keep this recommendation short.

The cover of "Hey, Boy".
A book written by Benjamin Strouse and illustrated by Jennifer Phelan.

A boy finds a dog and ends up taking him home. They quickly bond, and talk of the adventures they will have and the games they will play.

And then the boy gets hurt. The parents leave the dog at a shelter and tell the boy he can adopt a dog when he is more mature. Later, when he goes back, the dog has already been adopted.

An interior page of the book "Hey, Boy", where the boy promises to return to the shelter to adopt him again.
A book written by Benjamin Strouse and illustrated by Jennifer Phelan.

But the bond between the dog and the boy continues to deepen over both their lives.

I’ll say here that neither the dog nor the boy die.

The illustrations are simple and sparse, the typography well chosen, easy to read in any light. There is not much dialogue, and can be read straight through without jumping across many characters or between speech bubbles. It has just the right amount of words per page, and has good spots for pauses and reflection (or to shove a tear back in your eye).

Check it out at your local library.