The Dog that Ate the World

The beautiful valley was a picture of harmony – bears fished, birds talked to each other and the fox played his fiddle for the other foxes – until the dog appeared.

The dog took what he wanted, and ate and ate until he became a huge beast, ignoring the song of the fox and the pleas of the rabbits. Eventually, when the dog has even eaten the sun, there is nothing left to consume – but the animals are safe, inside his belly.

This second picture book by the incredibly gifted Sandra Dieckmann reads like a myth from an ancient culture – the ever-hungry dog could be interpreted as personifying the nature of greed, but could also be seen as a warning against rising extinction rates and excessive consumerism. The message may be a serious one, but the tone remains gentle and entirely appropriate for little ones, and Dieckmann’s sublime illustration is full of sunshine.