Our #Booky100Keeper books for Day 10 hark right back to the very beginning of the blog, in fact it was a review of "No Roses for Harry" that was our very first review published, back on August 12th 2010.

Ten years later, the "Harry" books are still read and loved, in particular "Harry by the Sea" and "Harry the Dirty Dog" which are easily our two favourites in this series. I have a vague childhood memory of these books (they're coming up for their 60th birthday fairly soon) and I'm sure I remember more titles, but these are the only ones remaining in print or easy to get hold of so let's have a closer look at them all, as they really are fantastic and have stood the test of time.

In "Harry by the Sea", Harry and his family go to the beach on one of the hottest days of the year. Poor Harry finds it difficult to find shade under the family's tiny beach brolly, so tries a number of ways to keep cool (slightly politically incorrect ways in one case, but remember this is a book from the 60s, things were a little different back then!)
 Harry soon ends up in the sea, covered in seaweed and mistaken for a nasty sea monster by a couple of twerpy beach patrol staff, but manages to have a fine adventure in between, before being reunited with his family. A great romp this one, filled with awesome poochy behaviour and funny little comical details thanks to Margaret Bloy Graham's quite child-like but brilliant art.

In "Harry the Dirty Dog" Harry behaves a lot like C - ie avoiding baths at all costs. In fact he takes the family scrubbing brush, buries it in the garden and then runs away. Of course being a dog Harry chooses a unique form of revenge for this hideous bath threatening behaviour - he gets as dirty as possible, so dirty in fact that he becomes a black dog with white spots - completely unrecognisable to his family when he crawls back with his tail between his legs as hunger gets the better of him. Will the family realise it's Harry after all?

"No Roses for Harry" is fab for those of you who (like us) have been knitted something by a relative for a birthday or christmas present. Something you really
don\t ever want to be seen dead in public in. Harry's "Grandma" knits him a "lovely" sweater, lime green and covered in yellow roses. Despite his best efforts, Harry can't rid himself of the dratted thing, and no matter how much he tries to leave it behind or lose it, some helpful soul always brings it back.

Thankfully in the end a bird picks at a loose thread and, encouraged by Harry, pulls the whole thing apart and flies off with it. Harry is delighted, but Grandma is very sad!

Harry realises the error of his ways and takes the family on a jumper hunt that ends with quite a delightful surprise.

Fab fun this one!

Finally there's a book that actually did the whole 'middle grade bridging book' years before modern formats claimed to have invented it.
In "Harry and the Lady Next Door" Harry's adventures are still highly illustrated, but the book's format will be instantly recognisable to modern kidlit fans as one of those fantastic early titles with a hefty word count but still plenty of pictures to drive the story along.

This time Harry's poor ears are being assaulted by a new neighbour who fancies herself as an opera singer. To Harry her sweet singing is like fingernails down a blackboard, so he uses all his canine intelligence to subvert her wailing practice sessions, even enlisting the help of a herd of cows, a brass marching band and a load of frogs.

Harry actually wins out in the end, despite the lady's continued noisemaking, and she wins a singing contest that sees her cruising off into the distance to become a famous singer abroad. I love the neat solution in this one.

These books may or may not still be in print but they're well worth tracking down - they're still brilliant reads even though some of the strange things that crop up in the illustrations may be completely 'of the era' these books were written in.

Original Review Links: 

No Roses for Harry

Harry by the sea

Harry the Dirty Dog

Harry and the Lady Next Door - N/A

As you've probably noticed, we've already taken a look at Harry by the Sea (and the rest of the excellent Harry books) previously on this blog. From time to time, Charlotte inevitably picks out books she's had before from the library, and it would've taken a better will and a stronger grip to wrestle this one out of her hands while we were checking out our other books this week 

This timeless tale of Harry the dog (which was first published back in the early 60s) sees the mischievous pup enjoying a day at the beach with his family. Harry being Harry, it's not long before he gets into trouble and causes uproar. 

I loved these books as a kid, and it's easy to see why Charlotte also loves them. The bold illustrations bring out Harry's character perfectly, and the story jogs along at a nice pace. It's a bit of a shame that Red Fox only republish 3 of the Harry books (and not the absolutely hilarious "Harry and the lady next door") but hopefully these books will sell in sufficient numbers for Red Fox to secure publishing rights to the rest. 

Charlotte's best bit: The whole thing but she particularly loves Harry the Seaweed Monster


Daddy's favourite bit: As before, Harry in the shade that a fat lady made...!

Harry's back, and this time he's dirty. The funniest dog in children's books is back with another adventure, this time with a helpful message about what happens if you're a grubby little urchin. Harry changes from a white dog with black spots to a black dog with white spots through some tactical bath avoidance. Naturally Harry doesn't realise the consequences of  being a soap-dodging dog until it's too late. 

As ever, Zion and Bloy Graham have come up with a winning book based on Harry's antics, that's as timeless as any of the more well-known children's classics. It's a pity that other books in the series (including one I remember from childhood, Harry and the Lady Next Door) are so hard to get hold of as I'd thoroughly recommend getting the entire set. 

Charlotte's Best Bit: Harry's various scrubbing brush hiding places. 

Daddy's Favourite Bit: Harry's expression when he knows he's got away without a bath. 

Rating: 5 out of 5

Amazon Link: £3.98

Published by Red Fox Picture Books


I offer no apologies for featuring / reviewing ANOTHER Harry book. Charlotte is absolutely in love with this mischievous little black spotted dog so we managed to grab another Harry book from the library. This time round, Harry goes to the seaside with his family and ends up being mistaken for a sea monster. 

Margaret Bloy Graham's cool 60s kitsch artwork is as fantastic as ever, and though the books can be a bit formulaic there's always plenty going on in each page and frame and Harry is the coolest dog in kid's books, bar none. 

Charlotte's best bit: Harry getting covered in seaweed and crawling out of the sea like a monster. 

Daddy's favourite bit: Harry trying to find a spot of shade by following a fat lady along the beach.