Gideon and his wholesome, happy quest to pet all the dogs has warmed my heart since I first found him on social media a couple of years ago. Now, he's helping other kids pet those dogs with this fun, informative guide! Of course he is!

Suitable for elementary to middle school readers, "Pet That Dog!" offers solid advice, fun facts, inspiring stories from history, fun silly quizzes, and a dog tracking log of about 150 breeds and several more categories for mutts and "dogs whose breeds aren't the most interesting thing about them." Kids can be on the lookout for tiny dogs or fluffy dogs or dogs who share their same name. The text is broken up into readable chunks, and super cute color illustrations, like what you see on the cover, appear throughout.

I'd call the advice itself above average. The part about holding out your hand for the dog to sniff is a little dated, but works fine in this context of approaching a dog whose owner has already indicated it's okay. Otherwise, it's better not to approach so directly (keep your hands in and the dog to your side rather than face-to-face — at least until the dog approaches and sniffs you). But I love that it includes illustrations and descriptions for dog body language! Kids that learn that part will be well on their way to understanding, appreciating, and safely petting all the dogs.

Content notes: a couple of war stories appear in the inspiring history tales

My thanks to NetGalley and Quirk Books for a digital ARC!