Book excerpt: From a devoted mutt giving "sloppy doggy kisses" to a tarantula munching happily on a cricket lunch, this lively collection of twenty poems celebrates the relationship between children and their pets. Popular poet and noted anthologist Lee Bennett Hopkins brings together many of today's best children's poets -- including X. J. Kennedy, Alice Schertle, and Karla Kuskin -- in this delightful festival of friendship. Jane Manning's bright and richly textured art cheerfully complements these playful poems.