Meet Matt and Roxy

Krystyna Higgins is the former book review editor for the Toronto-based
Catholic New Times.

Matt is an active towheaded preschooler. His bull terrier, Roxy,
functions as the narrative voice that guides us through a summer day of
fun and games. We see the photogenic pair romping at the park and in the
water, playing dress-up, exploring the beach, sharing ice cream, and
even sharing a bed at the end of the day.

Meet Matt and Roxy is essentially an album of photographs in which the
text serves as little more than captions. Photographer Susan Huszar has
previously done a series of toddler books for Annick. While young
children love to look at pictures of animals and other children, the
hand-tinted photography used here evokes nostalgic reminiscences of old
family albums from an earlier era—a nuance that may appeal to adult
readers but be lost on the intended young audience.

The dedication reads, in part: “In loving memory of Roxy.” One is
left with the feeling that the book is a private family album packaged
for public consumption.

Recommended (because of the quality of the production), but with
considerable reservations.