How to Train Your Dad by Gary Paulsen

Abstract

Reviewed by: How to Train Your Dad by Gary Paulsen Elizabeth Bush Paulsen, Gary How to Train Your Dad. Farrar, 2021 [192p] Trade ed. ISBN 9780374314170 $17.99 E-book ed. ISBN 9780374314187 $10.99 Reviewed from digital galleys R Gr. 4-7 Carl realizes he’s blessed with a really good single father—attentive, ethical, engaged in his community, and in his way a solid and reliable provider even though what [End Page 27] he provides is a trailer set in an industrial zone, food either homegrown or salvaged from dumpsters, and clothing sourced from garage sales or deep discount bulk buys. Dad’s commitment to cheap is based on firm philosophical belief that barter is the best form of commerce, and Carl respects that. As a boy on the cusp of his teens hoping to catch the approving eye of classmate Peg, though, Carl knows that riding a homemade recumbent bike to school and wearing secondhand pink overalls embroidered with cute sayings isn’t going to get the job done. Inspired by a puppy-training pamphlet in a bag of kibble, Carl decides that a system of gentle negative and subtle positive reinforcement will steer his dad away from the dumpster and garage sale circuit and into the world of cash transactions and middle-school-worthy goods. Carl’s recount of the training program, its fallout on his best friend Pooder and skunk-shredding pet pit bull Carol, and its satisfying if unpredicted conclusion are relayed here in often hilarious detail via episodes that ring like updated Jean Shepherd. Breezy and light, with a grounding touch of tenderness, this is both an entertaining solo read and a solid suggestion for family sharing. Copyright © 2021 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois