Skippers Ahoy!

Skippers Ahoy! is a story about several dogs’ journey all over the world in search of a tail. The Belgian Schipperke, small black dogs, are known for not having tails. In this book, the dogs travel far and wide, discovering places such as Zanzibar, Africa, Baffin Island and Peru. Along the way, they meet run into monkeys, polar bears and even get to have tea and biscuits with the Queen!

Caroline Stellings illustrates beautifully. She uses watercolour which brings the story to life. Her images are whimsical and creative. She also adds pieces of nonfiction which adults and young readers will appreciate. For example, on each page there is a rope tied around the text. All of the pieces of rope are tied with different knots, such as a cat’s paw or a clove hitch. This is certainly going to spark conversations with readers about knot tying with readers. There are also illustrations of various animals and scenes that are native to the land being visited, and these help to give that land context and teach young readers about geography.

Readers seeking a fun adventure and cute dogs in search of tails will enjoy reading Stellings’ Skippers Ahoy!.