Genre
Picture books for children
Tone
Funny
Subject
Boys
Children and wild animals
Moose
Pets
Rules
Wild animals as pets

I didn't want to add this book to my 2013 challenge because it's so short but it's so beautiful that it won me over. Charming, sensitive, funny and wise, it's a must-read for everyone. ( )

Picture book with a theme about how perhaps what you want and what your pet (or other associate) has in mind doesn't match. Wilfred thinks he has a pet moose, which sometimes follows his Rules for Being A Pet but often doesn't. But what happens when his moose's wanderings lead him to meet someone else who thinks the moose is her pet?

There's a definite Daniel Pinkwater feel to this, though it isn't as surrealistic as Daniel probably would have made it. Eccentric illustrations add to the experience. For something completely opposite but in the same vein, try "Blue Moose & Return of the Blue Moose" and, alternatively, "Six-Dinner Sid".

Wilfred just knew that the moose came along just to be his. And so Wilfred named his moose Marcel and then set about teaching him the rules of being a good pet. Marcel was very good at following Rule 4: Not making too much noise while Wilfred plays his record collection. But he wasn’t very good with Rule 7: going whichever way Wilfred wants to go [and he wasn’t good at Rule 7, subsection b: maintaining a certain proximity to home].

But one day Wilfred and Marcel go for a very long walk and Wilfred makes a terrible discovery.

The target audience for this whimsical tale is the young reader, ages three through seven [preschool through second grade]; the art for this book includes oil painting onto old linotype and painted landscapes. Young readers are sure to sympathize with Wilfred’s plight, but the quirky tale of a boy who believes he owns a moose is both clever and heartfelt. There’s an added vocabulary bonus and a moral about compromise, but the cute yet silly book is sure to become a favorite, with both children and their parents.

Highly recommended. ( )

After being assigned the author, Oliver Jeffers for a college assignment and reading almost all of his children's books, the fictional children's picture book, "This Moose Belongs to Me" is one of my absolute favorites. The story follows a young boy, Wilfred and his pet/friend Moose, named Marcel, as Wilfred has set rules for their friendship. Throughout the story, Wilfred reveals some of the guidelines he has set for his moose, which Jeffers displays in a fun, handwritten-like red font, which stands out from the rest of the text and illustrations. Wilfred's rules bring a comical aspect to the storyline and make the entire story entertaining and therefore engaging to any reader. Despite the light-hearted comedy the story provides, Wilfred is soon faced with the hard reality that Marcel is not just "his" moose but instead Marcel has his own opinions and feelings about those rules. The story of Marcel and Wilfred holds a positive message of friendship and equality and conveys these important messages through creative illustrations and comical writing. It is important to note when reading any story, especially one by Oliver Jeffers, it is crucial to discuss and share the lessons within the story as some young children may not be able to distinguish these messages themselves without a prompt. ( )