No Room for a Pup, written by Elizabeth Suneby and illustrated by Laurel Molk. Kids Can Press, 2019. $18.99 ages 4 and up

"Mia thought there was plenty of room for a puppy. It wasn't like she was asking for an elephant. Every morning before school, Mia went down the hall to her grandma's apartment for breakfast. One morning, Mia spied a sign in the elevator. "Puppies to good homes! Apartment 202." Her eyes lit up. "That's where your friend Alina lives."

It is an age-old story. Children want puppies; parents are not so enamored of such a plan. Mia and her mom live in a small apartment in a big city, with little room for adding a fur baby. Mia is very unhappy when she hears her mom reiterate a tired response: "NO ROOM!"

So, when the little girl meets and falls in love with a pup while visiting her grandmother's neighbor, she must find a way to make her mother change her mind. Thanks to an attentive grandmother and her friends, Mia's idea results in an influx of requests from neighbors needing help with temporary care for their pets. Every day someone brings a much-loved pet to their apartment door, starting with Grandma who needs a place to stay while her apartment is painted. She brings her parrot Roger. Then Mia brings home the class rabbit from school - it's her turn to take responsibility. And so it goes!

If you are having a flashback to the first time you read Margot Zemach's It Could Always Be Worse (1997), you are not alone. Our family loved that book and its premise. The apartment begins to fill with all the chaos of an ever-growing group of houseguests.

"The dog dashed up, down and all around. The cat
chased the rabbit that zipped and zoomed around
the room.

With all the houseguests,
no one got up much sleep."

Soon the parrot, rabbit, cat and dog, are joined by a pig. Just when it seems Mom will totally lose it; the pets return home with their owners. All of them, except one small puppy. He doesn't make the apartment seem small at all.

Kids will love it! Do NOT miss the last page. I love surprises!